Robert F. Kennedy Jr., head of the Department of Health and Human Services, said Tylenol should be used with caution during pregnancy, but there is a lack of hard data linking it to autism.
Texas sues Tylenol maker over alleged autism link
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- President Trump said last month that U.S. officials would recommend restricting Tylenol’s use during pregnancy, even though doctors maintain it is safe.
- On October 28, the state of Texas sued Tylenol maker Kenvue, accusing it of concealing data about health risks.
- RFK Jr. said there isn’t enough data to confirm a link between Tylenol and autism, but painkillers should be avoided during pregnancy if possible.
WASHINGTON, DC – Although there is not enough evidence to confirm that Tylenol causes autism, the painkiller should still be used with caution, President Donald Trump’s top health official said on October 29, a month after the president said U.S. health officials would recommend limiting Tylenol’s use.
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s comments also came a day after the Republican state of Texas sued Kenvue, the maker of the drug, also known as acetaminophen, which has been widely sold for decades.
“The causal relationship between Tylenol administered during pregnancy and the perinatal period is not sufficient to say with certainty that it causes autism. But it is very suggestive,” Kennedy told reporters, citing animal, blood, and observational studies.
“It requires a cautious approach,” he added.
In September, President Trump, who is not a doctor, warned pregnant women not to take the drug, without citing any scientific evidence. His unproven claims initially hurt the stock price of Kenvue, a consumer health company spun off from Johnson & Johnson in 2023, and sparked a backlash from many doctors.
Dr Kenbue has repeatedly defended painkillers, saying there is no scientific link to autism and warning that such proposals could put maternal health at risk.
The company asked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to reject calls to put an autism warning on Tylenol’s labels and reportedly hired a new head of marketing.
“As Secretary Kennedy stated, we agree that the best message to pregnant women is to consult a health care professional before taking acetaminophen, and our Tylenol label instructs consumers to do so. We also agree that there is no definitive causal link between taking acetaminophen and autism,” the company said in a statement.
Kenview stock was down 1.4% as of market close on October 29th.
(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Ahmed Abrenuin in Washington and Kamal Chaudhry in Bengaluru; Editing by Leslie Adler, Deepa Babington and David Gregorio)
