Trump had linked autism to childhood vaccine use and the taking of Tylenol by women when pregnant, elevating claims not backed by scientific evidence.VALERIE MACON/AFP/Getty Images
European Union and British health agencies confirmed on Tuesday the safety of paracetamol during pregnancy, disputing a warning from U.S. President Donald Trump linking the popular pain medication to autism.
The World Health Organization said that evidence of a link remained inconsistent and urged caution in drawing conclusions.
On Monday, Trump linked autism to childhood vaccine use and the taking of Tylenol by women when pregnant, elevating claims not backed by scientific evidence to the forefront of U.S. health policy.
What the research says about Tylenol, pregnancy and autism
The European Medicines Agency said on Tuesday that there was no new evidence that would require changes to the region’s current recommendations for the use of paracetamol, known as Tylenol in the United States, during pregnancy.
“Available evidence has found no link between the use of paracetamol during pregnancy and autism,” the EMA said in a statement, adding paracetamol could be used during pregnancy when needed, though at the lowest effective dose and frequency.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday there was a link between the use of popular over-the-counter pain medication Tylenol and the development of autism during pregnancy, a claim which many doctors dispute.
Reuters
On Monday, Britain’s health regulator said it was safe to use.
“The evidence remains inconsistent,” WHO spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic told a Geneva press briefing when asked about a possible link between paracetamol use in pregnancy and autism.
He cited unspecified studies that pointed to a possible link but said this was not confirmed by subsequent research. “This lack of replicability really calls for caution in drawing casual conclusions,” he said.
Viktor Ahlqvist, lead author of the largest scientific study into possible links between paracetamol use during pregnancy and autism, said the Trump administration “seemed to have misunderstood the available evidence”.
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“We do not find support that paracetamol in pregnancy would cause autism,” Ahlqvist said, referring to their study, which looked at 2.5 million pregnancies in Sweden.
Ahlqvist said exposure to any type of medication during pregnancy correlates with adverse outcomes in children, typically not because of the drug but the underlying health problems for which they might need it.
In a highly unusual press conference at the White House on Monday, Trump delivered medical advice to pregnant women and parents of young children, repeatedly telling them not to use or administer the painkiller and suggesting that common vaccines not be taken together or so early in a child’s life.
U.S. President Donald Trump’s Tylenol and vaccine warnings have left some pregnant women angry and others with questions. Alison Singer, co-founder of the Autism Science Foundation, offers more context.
The Associated Press
The advice from Trump goes against that of medical societies, which have cited data from numerous studies showing that acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, plays a safe role in the well-being of pregnant women.
Asked to elaborate further on Trump’s remarks, Jasarevic said vaccines did not cause autism and affirmed their life-saving qualities. “This is something that science has proven, and these things should not be really questioned,” he added.