Rankin Inlet (Jun 28/06) - In the battle to convince pregnant women to abandon the bottle, the Nunavut health department has turned to a novel solution: art.

Health officials issued a territory-wide call last week for paintings and drawing focusing on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) and its effects.

Pelagie Sharp, a wellness worker with the health department, is promoting an art contest designed to raise awareness about Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. She's holding dolls that illustrate FASD. - Andrew Raven/NNSL photo

The department hopes to raise awareness about the condition, which co-ordinator Winnie Benfied called a "very, serious problem."

"It is the leading cause of mental deficiencies in Canada," she said last week. "We want to get people to talk about FASD."

There are no official statistics on the number of Nunavummiut who suffer from the disorder, which is notoriously difficult to diagnose, Benfied said. There are only about 17 health centres in Canada that make those pronouncements, she said.

The effects of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder range from mild behavioral problems, to serious cognitive impairments and facial deformities.

There are some women who don't understand the effects of alcohol on the fetus and others who simply cannot stop drinking, said Pelagie Sharp, a wellness worker with the health department based in Rankin Inlet.

She hopes the art contest will help raise the profile of the disorder and let women know there is help available.

"FASD is out there. It hits everyone - all ages, all nationalities," she said.

Health officials will select submissions - which can be drawings or paintings - in four age categories. Cash prizes will go to the top entry in each group and the top 12 will be used in a 2007 wall calendar, Sharp said.

The deadline is July 12, and while Sharp had not received any submissions as of early last week, she was hopeful the contest would gain steam.

At least one Rankin restaurant has agreed to hand out FASD fact sheets with a space on the back for drawings.

But the struggle against the disorder extends beyond simple awareness, Benfield said. She believes there needs to be a far-reaching support system in Nunavut to help women deal with alcohol addiction.

"Prevention is not just knowing about FASD," she said.