The National Rural Health Alliance is calling for a national strategy for the prevention and management of Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD), a condtion they say is totally preventable.

If alcohol is not consumed, the baby will not have FASD, the Alliance says.

The Director of Mount Isa Centre for Rural and Remote health, Professor Sabina Knight said wherever you get high rates of alcohol consumption along with big disposable incomes there is a high rate of FASD.

"In a place like Mount Isa, where high rates of alcholol consumption are the norm, young people are much more exposed."

She said alcohol consumption among young women in rural areas was also higher than in cities.

"These are not marginalised women we're talking about; they're often well educated," Professor Knight said.

Their unborn babies were exposed to the toxic effects of alcohol.

"Alcohol is a poison like other drugs."

FASD is not one thing, Professor Knight said.

"It can affect a child's learning ability, they may have Attention Deficit Disorder diagnosis and they may also be very much affected by alcohol.

"Not all the cases are textbook cases and there are women who say, 'Well, I drank during pregnancy and it didn't affect my child,' but how do they know?"

Professor Knight said we have to deal with what we know and move from there.

"We know we have big problems with alcohol in the bush because we know we have high rates of alcoholism.

"We need to scale back on our drinking, young people and older people too.

"People need to have a good time without overdoing it," she said.

People need to drink in moderation and make sure there was no risk of getting pregnant.

"If there is, don't drink at all."

For those babies affected by FASD, we have to prepared to look after them for life, Professor Knight said.

"I'm not talking about institutional care, but the community needs to care for these people.

"Because they will end up in jail.

"People with borderline intelligence levels and FASD are over represented in jails, and many have a history of maternal drinking."

Yet FASD was 100 per cent preventable if we could line up all the strategies, Professor Knight said.

"It's not about scaring people, but about giving them the right information."