“The Trump Administration does not believe popping more pills is always the answer for better health. There is mounting evidence finding a connection between acetaminophen use during pregnancy and autism.” This statement was released on Sept. 22, 2025 by the official White House website following a fervent saga marred by lies, inaccuracies, political judgments, and scientific misinformation. This sort of claim sounds less like an official public health message and more like the rhetoric of an oversensationalized wellness influencer: the kind who shames women into avoiding hospitals, pushes “natural” home births, or urges parents to skip childhood vaccinations. However, it actually began with a group of credible researchers raising legitimate concerns about rising autism rates among children in the U.S.
Of the studies cited in the headline-catching statement, the most poignant was a joint review by the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital. The review analyzed 46 previous studies on acetaminophen, or Tylenol, use during pregnancy, eight of which focused specifically on autism. The study concluded that while there was a reported link between acetaminophen exposure prior to birth and higher rates of ADHD and autism, the findings did not demonstrate that the drug caused either condition.
Another statistic frequently cited by Donald Trump during the now controversy-laden press conference was the most recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate for U.S. Autism rates, which reported that one in 31 eight-year-old children in the U.S. was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder in 2022, an almost 400% increase since 2000.
While headlines and statistics may make it seem as though autism rates are skyrocketing due to environmental factors or medication use, it is important to consider how changes in diagnosis, awareness, and public perception have shaped these numbers over time. Autism, more formally known as Autistic Disorder (ASD), is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by persistent deficits in social communication or interaction, and restricted, repetitive behaviors and interests. However, the formal definition and diagnostic testing conducted to identify the disorder have remained fluid.
In the 1960s, to be considered autistic, a patient most likely had to be nonverbal; with ASD only being formally diagnosed in the most severe cases. In the 1980s and 1990s, the definition of autism expanded to include children who were hyper-fixated on specific behaviors, but this was only diagnosed in young children. More recently in 2013, the autism spectrum came to encompass people with Asperger’s Syndrome, a neurodevelopmental disorder that was previously considered a separate condition. Thus, it is reasonable to conclude that the apparent rise in autism diagnoses can be attributed not only to the expansion of diagnostic criteria but also to shifting public perceptions and a gradual reduction in stigma surrounding the condition.
This means that although major studies have encountered a correlational relationship between Tylenol usage during pregnancy and ASD, it is important not to confound such associations as causal. Nuances in developmental risk factors can implicate autism spectrum disorder. When it comes to studying the link between Tylenol and autism, one confounding factor is that women may take the painkiller during pregnancy to address another health condition that may be linked to autism, such as infection or fever. In healthcare, every decision has consequences. Taking and not taking a medication both carry sets of benefits and harms, all because medications, therapies, and surgeries all have negotiable implications and tradeoffs.
The Trump administration’s decision to issue a public health guideline linking Tylenol to autism without reliable scientific backing reflects a broader erosion of trust in expertise and an overshadowing of true fact in preference of partisan politics. However before making this an issue of the right or left, whether it was President Biden announcing COVID-19 boosters before the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had approved them, or President Trump promoting hydroxychloroquine as a “game changer” treatment for COVID-19 while his own National Institution of Health rushed to fact-check him, these actions display a pattern of politicizing public health. These actions display a pattern of politicizing public health, undermining trust in expert guidance and creating confusion among the public. The problem is clearly universal, and with the recent autism press conference, public trust has arguably reached an all-time low. Public health communication is no longer merely political theater; it has devolved into something resembling a partisan soap opera. Science and expertise have taken a backseat to ideology and misinformation.
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