Experts slam Trump for linking paracetamol use to autism

BarcelonaThe scientific community was shocked when Donald Trump was elected president of the United States again. After a first term marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, in which the US president suggested that the disease that had turned the world upside down in just a few months could be combated with "ultraviolet rays" or "disinfectant injections," Trump returned to the White House with Robert F. Kennedy as Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS). This Monday, Trump added another element to this list when he announced that US federal health authorities will advise against taking paracetamol in early pregnancy due to the risk of developing autism, a disorder that the president maintains can be treated with a drug called leucovorin.

"Don't take it!" Trump exclaimed numerous times throughout the press conference. The president not only attacked the drug's active ingredient, which he directly linked to autism despite the lack of evidence, but also questioned childhood vaccinations, which have declined in recent years in the United States. "There are groups that don't get vaccinated and don't take medication that don't have autism, like the Amish," Trump asserted, adding that in countries like Cuba, where he claims they cannot afford the medication, there are also no recorded cases of these disorders. There is no scientific evidence to validate either of the US president's two claims.

Both decisions have drawn criticism from experts, who point out that the causes of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are still unclear, although they agree that it is very likely genetic, with a wide range of genes yet to be determined coming into play. Monique Botha, associate professor of Social and Developmental Psychology at Durham University in the United Kingdom, says that there are many studies that refute the correlation proposed by Trump between paracetamol use and the risk of developing ASD. "The important thing was a Swedish study of 2.4 million births published in 2024 that used real sibling data and found no relationship between paracetamol exposure in the womb and autism," she explains in statements to the Science Media Center (SMC).

Some of these studies have investigated the possibility that the increase in autism cases is related to paracetamol use during pregnancy and have ruled it out. Dimitris Siassakos, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at University College London, argues that this correlation is disproved if more important factors, such as the genetics of the participants, are taken into account. "For example, in studies that analyzed siblings, any association disappeared: what mattered was family history, not paracetamol use," says the SCM expert.

Both Botha and Siassakos agree that paracetamol is a safe medication with proven benefits for pregnant women. "It's a much safer option for pain relief during pregnancy than virtually any other alternative, and we must take women's pain seriously, including during pregnancy," warns Botha, who believes this announcement will cause alarmism and "prevent women from accessing appropriate care during pregnancy." Siassakos also expressed similar views, warning that this decision by the Trump administration "could prevent families from using one of the safest pregnancy medications when they need it."

Risk of Stigmatization

Botha also focuses on families with autistic children, as "there is a risk of stigmatizing families as if they themselves had caused it." For all these reasons, they insist that there is no correlation between the use of this drug during pregnancy and the risk of autism, which scientific evidence also places as a hereditary disorder. Regarding leucovorin as a treatment, as proposed by Trump, the expert believes that more research is needed on its effects: "The evidence available at this time is exceptionally provisional and is not considered robust," she warns, adding that there is currently no therapy that "actively cures or eliminates autism."

Since Trump's arrival, the US administration has stopped funding research projects at laboratories and hospitals abroad that received grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), suspended research programs, and frozen funds that until recently contributed to the global advancement of science and improved the health of millions of people. For example, it has frozen resources for research into HIV and AIDS, withdrawn funding for projects focused on COVID-19, and cut at least $400 million in aid to Columbia University following pro-Palestinian protests on campus. It also froze millions of dollars in federal funds and suspended funding for federal contracts at Harvard after the center refused to yield to the new administration's campaign to try to control the operation of universities.