Fetal alcohol effect is a devastating condition that was misunderstood and often misdiagnosed until the 1990s.

Now, eighth grade students at Ellis Middle School are learning about the symptoms, its effects on the lives of those with the condition and their families, and that it is 100 percent preventable, thanks to Barbara Knigge, a licensed alcohol drug counselor and her play about a woman with a form of fetal alcohol exposure called "Eve: A Woman With Fetal Alcohol Effect."

The play explores how Eve's brain damage – caused by her mother's drinking during the pregnancy – nearly ruins her life and the lives of her adopted parents. No one realizes what causes Eve's hyperactivity, short attention span and inability to understand the causes and effects of her actions and it makes her an outcast of society and of her family.

Knigge says the play was created in 1991 when she was asked to write it for a workshop about fetal alcohol syndrome and fetal alcohol effect. "That project was probably the first formal workshop on the topic itself and within the last 10 years, the interest in trying to understand this has really grown," she says.

Fetal alcohol syndrome and fetal alcohol effect are both caused by drinking alcohol during pregnancy. Both conditions are characterized by difficulty concentrating and the inability to understand cause and effect. "When they (people with either condition) do something wrong, they don't understand the consequences," Knigge explains. "It's all due to brain damage from drinking during the pregnancy."

The difference between the two conditions is that someone with fetal alcohol syndrome also has distinctive facial features, such as wide-set eyes, low ears and a flat upper lip, Knigge says.

Dorothy Meyer, a nurse with Mower County Public Health and the Youth Risk Behavior coordinator for Mower County says the play was funded by the Youth Risk Behavior Endowment and the Austin Kiwanis Club and was performed for the eighth grade students because "we want to give them knowledge because if they have the knowledge, that will help prevent fetal alcohol syndrome and fetal alcohol effect."

Meyer says 10 percent of all mental retardation is caused by drinking during pregnancy, but through educational programs, hopefully that figure will decline.

The students watched a video about fetal alcohol exposure (the term for both fetal alcohol syndrome and fetal alcohol effect) before the performance and Meyer said there would be classroom discussion about fetal alcohol exposure following the play. "I hope they will learn not only for themselves, but for their friends and family members," she says. "I hope they can be an advocate for avoiding alcohol during pregnancy and can teach others about fetal alcohol exposure."

Amanda L. Rohde can be reached at 434-2214 or by e-mail at amanda.rohde@austindailyherald.com