Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will reveal that Tylenol use during pregnancy and a folate deficiency may be linked to autism.
During a Cabinet meeting last week, HSS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declared that his department has pinpointed “certain interventions” that are almost certainly causing autism in children.
President Trump pressed the issue head-on during the Cabinet meeting, calling the autism crisis “a tremendous horror show” devastating American families.
Kennedy stunned the room with the numbers. In 1970, he said, a massive Wisconsin study of 900,000 children found an autism rate of less than one in 10,000. Today, official numbers put autism at 1 in 31 children nationwide.
California reports that one in 19 children are diagnosed with autism.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Tylenol and having a folate deficiency are potentially linked to autism.
The Wall Street Journal reported:
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. plans to announce that pregnant women’s use of an over-the-counter pain medication is potentially linked to autism in a report that will also suggest a medicine derived from folate can be used to treat symptoms of the developmental disorder in some people, people familiar with the matter said.
The report, expected this month from the Department of Health and Human Services, is likely to highlight low levels of folate, an important vitamin, and Tylenol taken during pregnancy as well as other potential causes of autism, people familiar with the matter said.
Kennedy’s department also plans to pinpoint a form of folate known as folinic acid, or leucovorin, the people said, as a way to decrease the symptoms of autism, which affected roughly one in 31 eight-year-olds in the U.S. in 2022.
Tylenol, whose active ingredient is acetaminophen, is a widely used pain reliever, including by pregnant women. Some previous studies have indicated risks to fetal development, but others have found no association. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists says it is safe to use in pregnancy, though it recommends pregnant women consult with their doctors before using it, as with all medicines.
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