The Trump Administration is scheduled for this Monday an advertisement in which a link between the consumption of paracetamol by pregnant women and an alleged risk that their children develop autism after birth, according to The Washington Post, will be established. The president of the United States himself, Donald Trump, had already anticipated on Saturday that his government would present findings related to autism, although he did not give additional details at that time.
During a dinner organized by the conservative American Cornerstone Institute, Trump declared: “On Monday we will make an advertisement about autism. I think it will be a very important ad. I think it will be one of the most important things that we will do ”, making it clear that its administration granted great relevance to the subject.
For his part, The Wall Street Journal reported this month that the Secretary of Health, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., plans to officially communicate that the use of Tylenol, a name with which the paracetamol is marketed in the United States, manufactured by Kenvue and free sale as analgesic, during pregnancy it could be related to the development of autism in children. This statement goes against current medical and scientific recommendations, indicating that the consumption of paracetamol in pregnant women is safe, according to Reuters.
In the United States, autism diagnoses have shown a considerable increase since 2000, which has generated greater restlessness in public opinion. According to data from the centers for disease control and prevention, CDC, in 2020 the autism rate between eight -year -old children reached one in 36, that is, 2.77 %, while in 2018 it was 2.27 %and in 2000 just 0.66 %.
The Secretary of Health has stated that the country is going through what it described as an “autism epidemic” originated by “environmental toxins.” However, decades of scientific studies have failed to definitively identify what are the factors that promote the increase in cases. Much of the academic community maintains that genetic inheritance, possibly combined with certain environmental influences, plays a determining role in the appearance of the disorder.
Despite these statements, the available scientific and medical evidence supports the security of paracetamol in pregnant women. There are no conclusive evidence that supports the hypothesis that their consumption is related to the autistic spectrum.
It should be remembered that, at the beginning of September, The Wall Street Journal had already advanced that Robert F. Kennedy Jr., in his capacity as Secretary of Health of the Trump Administration, prepared to publicly announce that the use of Tylenol during pregnancy could be related to the autistic spectrum disorder. This disorder is defined as a condition of neurological development characterized by difficulties in social interaction, communication problems and the presence of repetitive behaviors.
