WELLINGTON - More Government money should be ploughed into educating New Zealanders about the damage alcohol causes to unborn children, says the Commissioner for Children, Roger McClay.
Mr McClay had wanted new laws to prevent foetal alcohol syndrome but, knowing they would be impossible to implement, he now intends calling on
Government ministers to support educating people on the issue.
"If our nation can look to legalise a drug such as marijuana, we can at least be making it plain that alcohol and pregnancy can't be mixed.
"This is one of the very few syndromes that can be prevented. Very seldom have I felt this stirred up about anything."
Mr McClay said he was recently told that every baby born without foetal alcohol syndrome in the United States saved the taxpayer $US1 million ($2.03 million) during the course of his or her lifetime.
"Babies born to alcoholic parents have an 80 per cent risk of inheriting the tendency to become alcoholic. They also are at greater risk of learning disabilities, behaviour problems and mental health difficulties."
The savings from educating people on the issue could be enormous in New Zealand, given our high alcohol consumption rate, he said.
"Here in New Zealand our women are pressured to consume alcohol. Even our pregnant women are encouraged to drink."
The "excessive" drinking by many Kiwi males was also having an effect, Mr McClay said.
"Alcohol lowers a male's testosterone levels. Heavy alcohol consumption during adolescence may permanently alter the DNA in a man's sperm. Alcohol use at the time of conception decreases the mobility of healthy sperm, increasing the risk of birth defects."
- NZPA
