The Blog

There are a number of reasons people may use alcohol in excess, including previous trauma, genetic susceptibility to alcohol use disorder, or to alleviate psychological distress. We often criticize people in the public eye (i.e. celebrities) for their alcohol use, and women tend to be scrutinized to a greater extent. The voices of celebrities are a very powerful influence on … Read More

Chelsea Pike is a Master’s in Science Communication student at Laurentian University in Sudbury, Ontario. Previously, she completed her undergraduate degree at the University of Ottawa in the Interdisciplinary Health Sciences program with a minor in biology and her Bachelor of Education at Queen’s University. Her research is focused on describing attitudes of Canadians towards FASD as identified in the … Read More

CanFASD Connect is introducing ‘Media Week’ this week, from April 15-19. We will be posting daily on a new topic surrounding the influence of media on the perception of FASD, including guest posts from individuals who are well versed in the field of FASD. Topics covered this week will include celebrities who have publicly spoken about refraining from alcohol use, … Read More

The 2019 recipient of the CanFASD Sterling Clarren Research Award is Dr. Tamara Bodnar. Dr. Tamara Bodnar is a Research Associate in the Department of Cellular and Physiological Sciences at The University of British Columbia (UBC), supervised by Dr. Joanne Weinberg. Her research examines the impact of prenatal alcohol exposure and other early-life environmental manipulations on immune function across development. … Read More

Research evidence is clear that maternal prenatal alcohol exposure may lead to the child developing Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). However, less research and discussion has focused on the potential contribution of paternal alcohol exposure on FASD. Our latest issue paper examines the current research on the potential genetic and epigenetic mechanisms that contribute to the fathers’ role in FASD. … Read More

Support to FASD missing in federal budget Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is a major public health issue in Canada, affecting four per cent of the population, which is more than autism, cerebral palsy and Down syndrome combined. Ninety per cent of individuals with FASD also experience metal health issues and a similarly high proportion struggle with substance use and … Read More

Difficulty sleeping is common among those with FASD. However, sleep difficulties are seldomly discussed in the literature, or among health care professionals and caregivers, as the focus remains on challenges experienced during the day. It is widely known that sleep is important for brain development, and poor sleep has been found to have a direct effect on daytime functioning because … Read More

“Minding the Brain” is a podcast series on cognitive and brain science, hosted by Kim Hellemans, Chair of the Department of Neuroscience, and Jim Davies, professor in the Cognitive Science department at Carleton University. Recently, Executive Director of CanFASD, Audrey McFarlane, was featured on a podcast episode to talk about the impact of alcohol on the developing brain. Dr. Hellemans … Read More

The 8th International Conference on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is coming to Canada, from March 6-9, at the Westin Bayshore. Though Canada is honoured to host a conference featuring so many global FASD experts from multiple disciplines, our progress in critical action is hindered by the lack of a national strategy. CanFASD (The Canada Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder Research … Read More

  On behalf of the Alberta Clinical and Community-Based Evaluation Research Team (ACCERT), and the extended Housing Initiatives team comprised of individuals with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD), parents of children with FASD, academic researchers, and housing and FASD experts, I am pleased to announce that we have completed our framework and evaluation plan for housing individuals with FASD. This … Read More