Trump administration suggests Tylenol during pregnancy causes autism, a link experts say is unproven

President Donald Trump speaks in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Monday, Sept. 22, 2025, in Washington, as Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., left, and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz listen. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

President Donald Trump suggested today that the use of Tylenol during pregnancy may contribute to rising autism rates in the U.S., a potential link experts have studied and say is unproven.

Speaking from the White House, the president said women should not take acetaminophen, also known by the brand name Tylenol, “during the entire pregnancy.” He also raised concerns about vaccines.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Make America Healthy Again movement wants answers on the causes of the marked increase in autism cases in the U.S. in recent years.

Experts say the rise in cases is mainly due to a new definition for the disorder that now includes mild cases on a “spectrum” and better diagnoses. They say there is no single cause to the disorder and say the rhetoric appears to ignore and undermine decades of science into the genetic and environmental factors that can play a role.

The announcement is the latest step the administration, driven by Kennedy and his supporters, has taken to reshape America’s public health landscape.

Experts say Trump’s announcement oversells what would be possible from a presidential administration in its first year. They  say more research is needed to conclusively identify whether and how environmental factors may play a role in autism.

Kennedy has promoted theories that vaccines could be responsible for rising rates of autism, which affects 1 in 31 U.S. children today, according to the CDC.

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