Last week, I discussed a tragedy that never gets the attention it deserves – that children born into a competitive world are not born equal and do not receive justice.
They’re newborns with damaged brains, born to mothers who consumed alcohol during pregnancy. Angry readers of the column replied, thanking me for reporting on this matter – a problem not familiar to many.
An angry reader from Lethbridge, Alta., writes, “This is one issue I cannot be silent on as it’s the highest level of child abuse. It must be viewed as criminal behaviour as these babies do not have a voice and enter this world with a huge developmental disadvantage due to the sins of their mother. I’m amazed that some of these women go on to have other brain damaged children, Somehow, this disaster has to be fixed”.
A teacher from Toronto says, “I was shocked and educationally perplexed with how to communicate effectively with children diagnosed with this disease. They were pleasant children for the most part but would have that blank stare. Their home life also had a circus aspect to it. You are so right that it is a life sentence for them with no chance of parole”.
From Thunder Bay, Ont., another teacher remarks, “I work with special needs children and have witnessed first-hand the tragic consequences of children being poisoned by alcohol before their birth. We need to see this disease as a serious public health problem with stronger educational programs. Some foods are labelled a ‘carcinogenic’. We should label alcohol ‘teratogenic’ due to its health effects. We often believe this is a First Nations problem, a tragedy for a small number of the population, and not alarmed as we should be”.
From Calgary, Alta., “We’ve had an aggressive strategy towards smoking during pregnancy, so why are we sitting-on-the-fence with alcohol?”
From Charlottetown, “Thank you for bringing this disease to our awareness. But I believe the incidence of affected children may be 10-fold higher than estimated because of misdiagnosis with other syndromes, such as autism and attention deficit disorders”.
My column triggered a sizable response, proving no one wants to see harm done to a newborn child. And readers included a list of suggestions to attack this tragedy.
For instance, they believed that the column should be in every liquor store, bar, pharmacy and doctor’s office. Some added that it should be distributed to school children. Others suggested that pregnant mothers should be forced to attend AA just like drunk drivers. Still others said they felt helpless when trying to change such societal problems. They thanked me for being their voice in this challenging matter.
Writing a newspaper column carries a huge responsibility, and I know that readers do not always agree with my opinion. However, I’m sure 99 per cent agree it makes sense to have palliative care centres for patients at the end of life.
And how could anyone not want to prevent brain-damaged newborns?
I believe injustices such as this occur because our voices are not loud enough for politicians to listen. But past experience shows they do listen if many thousands speak with one voice. Now that we have a new website, docgiff.com, we can have that loud voice if readers sign up for it. So, when I suggest that enforced education of young women can save these damaged newborns, along with other health concerns, more deaf ears will start to listen.
Our political system often lacks good, old-fashioned horse sense. But it’s still one of the best in the world. One of the most important columns I wrote years ago asked the government to legalize heroin to ease the agony of terminal cancer pain. Readers, who had seen loved ones die in agony responded, and I delivered 40,000 of their letters (not emails) to politicians in Ottawa. They eventually listened and heroin was legalized in December 1982. A loud voice works.
Dr. W. Gifford-Jones is a syndicated columnist whose medical column appears in The Guardian every Tuesday. Check out his website, docgiff.com, which provides easy access to past columns and medical tips. For comments, readers are invited to email him at [email protected]. He can also be found on Twitter.com/GiffordJonesMD.
