Canadian Prenatal Nutrition Program
Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Fetal Alcohol Effect
Poor nutrition and alcohol consumption by pregnant mothers have combined to give Inuit among the highest rates of FAS/FAE in the country. The impact of FAS/FAE inhibits the ability of affected children to learn and deprives them of reaching their full potential. The Canada Prenatal Nutrition Program (CPNP) is a federal program initiated in 1994 that targets pregnant women who are at risk of having unhealthy babies due to the poor health and malnutrition of the mother. The CPNP is based on a community development model of service delivery and contains an initiative that focuses specifically on the issue of FAS/FAE.
The goals of the FAS/E initiative are to:
- Prevent FAS/E
- Increase the knowledge about FAS/E in the communities and in affected families
- Improve the quality of life of FAE children and their families.
ITK and Pauktuutit, the Inuit Women's Association, both sit on the National Steering Committee for CPNP/FAS/FAE. Their participation ensures that Inuit needs and priorities in this area are recognized and that programs and services are tailored specifically for Inuit.
An important element of the program is an annual four-day training and networking workshop held in each Inuit region for the CPNP trainers. These workshops play an important role in not only keeping the skills of the trainers sharp and current, but also by enabling them to share ideas and information on how to increase CPNP and FAS/FAE awareness.