Another scientifically unfounded statement from Donald Trump. This Monday, November 10, the British medical journal BMJ concluded in a study that “Currently available data are insufficient to prove an association between in utero exposure to paracetamol and autism and attention deficit disorder (ADHD) during childhood”.
The American President’s repeated statements in recent weeks regarding such a link are refuted by this research, given the state of scientific knowledge. In September, the Republican billionaire – who appointed conspiracy theorist Kenney to Health – explicitly asked pregnant women not to use the painkilling molecule, which is marketed as Tylenol in the United States.
The scientific community, and in particular the World Health Organization (WHO), has widely criticized these allegations, noting that the medical consensus does not support such a link. He has repeatedly warned that paracetamol, on the other hand, is the painkiller of choice for pregnant women, unlike aspirin or ibuprofen, which have been shown to pose risks to the fetus.
Research published in a British medical journal strengthens this consensus. It is not based on new research but provides the most complete and precise picture to date of the state of knowledge. A type of work is called “umbrella magazine”collect other research that seeks to gather knowledge.
In short, a summary synthesis praised by several experts. “(It) is based on a high-quality methodology that confirms what is repeated by experts around the world”assessed by Dimitrios Sassiakos, professor of midwifery at University College London, in reaction to the British Science Media Center.
Several studies have shown a possible link between paracetamol and autism or ADHD. But the authors of the BMJ study criticized its quality “weak” Or “very weak”because they generally do not take sufficient precautions to rule out the role of other factors, such as genetic predisposition or maternal health problems. This criticism specifically concerns a study published in 2025 in the journal Environmental Health and is regularly cited by the Trump administration. He raised the possibility of a connection, but without concluding that there was one.
In addition to questions about paracetamol, the American president and his Minister of Health, Robert Kennedy Jr., often made unfounded statements about autism, both about the existence of autism. “epidemic” or in connection with vaccination.
