Medical experts lambasted Trump, with one bioethicist saying it was ‘the saddest display of … outright lies and dangerous advice I have ever witnessed by anyone in authority’
Donald Trump has linked the use of paracetamol by woman during pregnancy to
autism in children â a claim that is disputed by many doctors.
Speaking to reporters at the White House this evening Trump said that he thought that the over-the-counter medication Tylenol â which is sold as paracetamol in the US â was a very big factor in the increase in cases of autism.
He claimed that the The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had conducted research which found evidence that women who take the drug when pregnant can give birth to children who have autism.
Medical experts said Trumpâs remarks were irresponsible.
New York University bioethicist Art Caplan said it was âthe saddest display of a lack of evidence, rumors, recycling old myths, lousy advice, outright lies, and dangerous advice I have ever witnessed by anyone in authority.âÂ
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He claimed âit is associated with an âincreased risk of autismâ and urged pregnant women to not take the drug when unless they have a really bad fever.
Trump said: âTaking Tylenol is not good.âIâll say it. Itâs not good. For this reason [the FDA] are strongly recommending that women limit Tylenol use during pregnancy unless medically necessary.
âUnless it is necessary such as you have an extremely high fever if you feel you canât tough it out and you canât do it, thatâs what you are going to do, but it should be very sparingly.â
The president also claimed one in 12 boys are now diagnosed with autism, calling it âamong the most alarming public health developments in history.â
Trump also criticised the vaccination of children and said he wanted âno mercuryâ or âaluminiumâ in vaccines.
He said: âYou have a little child, a little fragile child, and you get a vat of 80 different vaccines, I guess. Eighty different blends. And they pump it in.â
Trump also said the FDA would be recommending women avoid using Tylenol.
It comes after some studies with inconclusive findings have shown a link between pregnant women taking Tylenol and autism.
During the briefing, US Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr said the FDA will begin the process of changing labels on the drugâs packaging to note what he said is the risk of use during pregnancy.
He added that the FDA will also begin issuing a public health campaign to spread awareness.
According to researchers, there is no firm evidence of a link between
the use of the drug and autism.
Kennedy previously promised to find the cause of autism and has long suggested it is related to vaccines without scientific proof. He has also said it must be related to an environmental toxin.
Decades of studies have yet to establish a definitive cause, but many
scientists believe genetics, potentially in combination with environmental influences, play a role.
Autism is a neurological and developmental condition marked by disruptions in brain-signaling that presents in different ways. Autistic people may have difficulties in communicating and interacting with other people; find certain external stimuli, such as bright lights or loud noises overwhelming; take longer to undertand information; get anxious or uncomfortable in unfamiliar settings; and repeat certain actions or thought patterns, according to the NHS.
In the US, Tylenol is made by consumer health company Kenvue, which was spun out from Johnson & Johnson in 2023, and generic versions of acetaminophen are also available.
Shares in the company were down 5.5 per cent in trading in New York yesterday, and have lost 17 per cent in September as reports emerged that the administration would link the drug to autism.
