“Trump Irresponsibly Links Tylenol to Autism — and Revives Mother-Blaming Myths”
“This presidential administration owes the public both accuracy and humility. Responsible communication distinguishes association from causation; explains uncertainty; avoids single-factor stories about complex traits; and centers the people most affected — in this case, autistic people and pregnant people.”
The following is a personal essay, and reflects the opinion of its author.
September 23, 2025
Yesterday, President Donald Trump carelessly advised that pregnant people should avoid Tylenol (acetaminophen), suggesting it causes autism. As an autistic, ADHD parent and social scientist, I can say plainly: this isn’t science; it’s fear-mongering. It revives mother-blaming myths, weaponizes uncertainty, and treats autistic existence as something to prevent rather than accept.
What the Evidence Actually Shows
The scientific record does not support a causal link between prenatal acetaminophen use and autism. Some observational studies report small associations — slightly higher rates of autism or ADHD in children whose mothers used acetaminophen during pregnancy — while others find no link. Associations aren’t causation, and these studies are limited by confounding and measurement problems that Trump and others in his administration didn’t mention in their press conference, which has been widely criticized.
A stronger test comes from sibling-comparison research. In a large 2024 Swedish study1, researchers compared brothers and sisters born to the same mother when she used acetaminophen in one pregnancy and not another. If acetaminophen truly caused autism, the exposed children should show higher autism rates than their unexposed siblings. They didn’t. Once you hold family factors constant — shared genetics, home environment, maternal health — the supposed link disappears. That tells us that the small associations in simpler studies are likely explained by family-level factors (like genetics, infections, or maternal conditions) rather than acetaminophen itself. Claims that Tylenol “causes” autism ignore this stronger evidence.
[Research: Tylenol Use Is Safe During Pregnancy]
The Old Pattern of Blaming Mothers
Blaming pregnant people for autism continues a well-documented pattern of pinning differences on maternal failings. Mid-20th-century theories accused “refrigerator mothers” of causing autism and “schizophrenogenic mothers” of causing mental disorders in children. Those ideas did real harm — and they were wrong. The Tylenol scare repeats the pattern with new props.
This narrative loads families with guilt and second-guessing, fuels anxiety and depression, and can worsen perinatal mood disorders. It also discourages care: Some parents may avoid needed pain relief for their children, and some pregnant people may forgo safe, indicated treatment because they fear being blamed for lifelong outcomes. Maternal blame doesn’t support health; it undermines it.
Autism Is Human Diversity, Not a Defect
Efforts to hunt for single preventable causes — and to attempt to police pregnant people’s behavior — assume autism is a problem to eliminate. It isn’t. Autism is a heritable, lifelong form of human variation. Treating it as pathology invites stigma, casts autistic people as mistakes to be avoided, and revives eugenic thinking. It also distorts policy priorities: funds and attention shift from access, supports, and accommodations toward “prevention” or pressuring autistic people to mask or pass.
The practical alternative is clear: respect autistic ways of being; invest in communication and sensory supports; expand inclusive schooling and healthcare; and measure success by quality of life, not by reducing the number of autistic people.
[Read: “Rising ADHD and Autism Rates Reflect Education — Not a Crisis”]
What Responsible Communication Looks Like
This administration owes the public both accuracy and humility. Responsible communication distinguishes association from causation; explains uncertainty; avoids single-factor stories about complex traits; and centers the people most affected — in this case, autistic people and pregnant people. It resists the urge to make sweeping behavioral edicts based on contested findings. And it keeps the focus on what helps: access to prenatal care, evidence-based guidance from clinicians, and robust supports for autistic children and adults across the lifespan.
The Cost of Moving the Goalposts
But by asserting that acetaminophen use in pregnancy causes autism, the President shifts public focus toward prevention and surveillance of pregnant people rather than acceptance and support for autistic people. That move has a price. It diverts attention and resources to unhelpful causes and spreads avoidable fear — fear that lands hardest on those with the least margin for error, the least access to care, and the most to lose from stigma.
Autism is human diversity, not a defect. Policymakers should focus on what matters: not finding the “answer” to a complex neurotype like autism, not blaming mothers, but making autistic lives easier, safer, and freer.
Autism and Neurodiversity: Next Steps
- Read: “RFK, Jr., Is Spreading a Dangerous, Ignorant Myth About Autism”
- Read: ADHD, Autism, and Neurodivergence Are Coming Into Focus
- Read: MAHA Commission Draws Swift Criticism, Condemnation
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View Article Sources
1Ahlqvist, V. H., Sjöqvist, H., Dalman, C., Karlsson, H., Stephansson, O., Johansson, S., Magnusson, C., Gardner, R. M., & Lee, B. K. (2024). Acetaminophen Use During Pregnancy and Children’s Risk of Autism, ADHD, and Intellectual Disability. JAMA, 331(14), 1205–1214. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2024.3172
