Research shows it can be reversed

For the first time‚ there is hope of reversing the effects of foetal alcohol syndrome (FAS).

Two drugs tested on rats erased the learning and memory deficits caused by foetal alcohol exposure‚ according to research from Northwestern University in the US.

The drugs have now paved the way for clinical trials.

Through the research‚ published this week in Molecular Psychiatry‚ scientists also identified a key molecular mechanism by which alcohol harms the unborn foetus.

“We’ve shown you can interfere after the damage from alcohol is done. That’s huge‚” said lead investigator and senior author Eva Redei in a statement released by the university.

Down the road‚ this could be great news for South Africa.

Leana Olivier‚ CEO of the Foundation for Alcohol Related Research which conducted 11 studies in four provinces‚ said: “In some areas the prevalence rate is as high as 25%.

“The Department of Health estimates the average FAS prevalence in South Africa is 6%. Compared with the next highest rate in the world‚ 1%-3% in America‚ this rate is alarmingly high.”

The organisation says three million South Africans are affected‚ and it was the high prevalence rate that brought researchers Sandra and Joseph Jacobson to the Western Cape after studying the syndrome in the US.

They found that effects of FAS included “low intelligence‚ behaviour problems and poor attention”.

According to University of Cape Town researcher Aliza Janse van Rensburg‚ SA’s high rate of FAS “originates from a multitude of complex factors.

“These include heritage‚ poverty‚ high levels of unemployment and low-paid menial jobs‚ depression‚ low self-esteem‚ low self-efficacy‚ increased accessibility to alcohol‚ lack of recreation‚ poor education‚ familial pressure‚ denial‚ and cultural misconceptions.”