WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Monday endorsed unverified claims of a connection between Tylenol and autism and repeated a series of lies about childhood vaccines despite medical experts saying he’s not being honest.
Speaking at the White House, Trump, joined by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Dr. Mehmet Oz, announced that his administration is issuing a warning to doctors not to recommend acetaminophen — the active ingredient in Tylenol — to pregnant women, and claimed it may be linked to autism in children.
“I want to say it like it is: Don’t take Tylenol. Don’t take it,” he said. “Fight like hell not to take it.”
“They are strongly recommending that women limit Tylenol use during pregnancy unless medically necessary,” Trump added. “That’s, for instance, in cases of extremely high fever.”
Trump went as far as to directly address pregnant women during the remarks, saying, “You’ll be uncomfortable. It won’t be as easy, maybe. But don’t take it if you’re pregnant. Don’t take Tylenol.”
At one point during his remarks, Trump admitted he was not making the announcement based on scientific facts but on “common sense.”
“You know, I’m just making these statements from me,” he said. “I’m not making them from these doctors, because when they talk about, you know, different results, different studies, I talk about a lot of common sense. And they have that too. They have that too, a lot.”
However, major medical groups have not proven a link between autism and the use of acetaminophen. In fact, most doctors and medical experts still recommend acetaminophen as the safest painkiller during pregnancy.
In a statement following Trump’s remarks, The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists warned that pain and fever can be harmful when left untreated during pregnancy
“The conditions people use acetaminophen to treat during pregnancy are far more dangerous than any theoretical risks and can create severe morbidity and mortality for the pregnant person and the fetus,” the group said in a statement.
“Today’s announcement by HHS is not backed by the full body of scientific evidence and dangerously simplifies the many and complex causes of neurologic challenges in children. It is highly unsettling that our federal health agencies are willing to make an announcement that will affect the health and well-being of millions of people without the backing of reliable data,” the statement continued.
Trump lies (again) about vaccines
Elsewhere, Trump floated a series of lies about childhood vaccines. He said shots may cause autism, that children receive too many vaccines before adulthood, and that the Amish community doesn’t experience the disorder.
However, that is not true. Autism exists in Amish communities, just like in the general population, despite myths suggesting otherwise.
Dr. Jake Scott, an infectious diseases specialist at Stanford Medicine, called the president’s claims about vaccines “completely wrong.”
