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Posted on 09/22/2025 12:34:10 PM PDT by nickcarraway
And Wall Street Journal story also suggests HHS will recommend leucovorin for autism symptoms
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. plans to announce that maternal use of acetaminophen (Tylenol) is potentially linked to autism in a new report, according to sources reported by the Wall Street Journalopens in a new tab or window.
The report also will suggest that leucovorin, also known as folinic acidopens in a new tab or window -- a medication used in conjunction with cancer drugs like methotrexate to counteract their toxic effects -- can be used to treat autism symptoms, the sources said.
"The results of the leucovorin studies so far are inconsistent and based on small studies," Alycia Halladay, PhD, chief science officer of the Autism Science Foundation, told MedPage Today. "Autism is too complex to be caused by one environmental factor or effectively treated by a single compound."
The HHS report, expected this month, is likely to suggest that potential causes of autism include low levels of folate and acetaminophen taken during pregnancy, the sources added.
Acetaminophen is used by the majority of pregnant womenopens in a new tab or window, and some women continue to use the analgesic for many weeks in pregnancy.
In a statement, the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) said it continues to advise that acetaminophen is appropriate to treat pain and fever during pregnancy, as these can carry risks for the fetus and mother.
"Untreated fever, particularly in the first trimester, increases the risk of miscarriage, birth defects, and premature birth, and untreated pain can lead to maternal depression, anxiety, and high blood pressure," said SMFM.
Evidence about acetaminophen's relationship with fetal development is mixed.
In 2021, a consensus statementopens in a new tab or window published in Nature Reviews Endocrinology claimed a growing body of research showed prenatal exposure to paracetamol (acetaminophen) may alter fetal development and increase the risks of neurodevelopmental, reproductive, and urogenital disorders.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologistsopens in a new tab or window (ACOG) responded, saying no clear evidence proves a direct relationship between the prudent use of acetaminophen during any trimester and fetal developmental issues, but women should consult with their doctors first.
"Neurodevelopmental disorders, in particular, are multifactorial and very difficult to associate with a singular cause," ACOG wrote. "The brain does not stop developing until at least 15 months of age, which leaves room for children to be exposed to a number of factors that could potentially lead to these issues."
There have been seven large-scale, rigorous epidemiological studies assessing whether prenatal acetaminophen and autism are linked, observed David Mandell, ScD, of the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine in Philadelphia, and an executive committee member of the Coalition of Autism Scientists.
"One finds an effect and six find no effect," Mandell told MedPage Today. "It is really challenging to separate out the effect of Tylenol from the effect of the infections that may lead people to take Tylenol," he added.
In 2024, sibling control analyses in Swedenopens in a new tab or window found that acetaminophen use during pregnancy was not associated with children's risk of neurodevelopmental disorders. However, models without sibling controls showed marginally increased risks, suggesting that family-related variables like genetics may be a factor.
Earlier this month, U.S. researchers published a review of 46 studiesopens in a new tab or window, saying that 27 studies reported positive associations between acetaminophen and neurodevelopmental disorders, nine showed null associations, and four indicated negative associations (protective effects).
SMFM said that a thorough review of studies discussing potential links between prenatal acetaminophen use and risks of autism or attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children does not establish a causal relationship.
"At this time, the weight of scientific evidence that acetaminophen use during pregnancy causes an increased risk for autism or ADHD is simply inconclusive," SMFM President Sindhu Srinivas, MD, MSCE, said in the statement. "In maternal-fetal medicine, as in all of medicine, our recommendations are based on an evaluation of rigorous research and data, clinical expertise, and our patients' values and preferences."
The HHS report takes a measured approach, listing possible causes of autism and discussing what's known and unknown, people familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal.
The NIH reportedly is taking the lead on drafting the report, which is set to be released later this month and largely expected to be based on existing research.
NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya, MD, PhD; FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, MD, MPH; and CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz, MD, are helping to shape the autism report, sources said.
The federal government did not confirm any details about the report.
"We are using gold-standard science to get to the bottom of America's unprecedented rise in autism rates," an HHS spokesperson said. "Until we release the final report, any claims about its contents are nothing more than speculation."
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I do remember reading there was a statistical link to vaccines and autism - but only in black boys.
I heard Pelosi shorted KVUE a few days ago.
The first time I ever heard of autism was on a Marcus Welby episode. I think Marcus Welby, M.D. came on in either the late 60s or early 70s. I don’t know when Tylenol came on the market but when I was pregnant with my 4 children in the late 1970s and one in 1987, I never would take Tylenol. To me, it was a fairly new drug that hadn’t been around long enough to know what effects it could have on a developing baby.
There has to be more to it than just tylenol. My aunt’s son has been in a home since he was a kid, he is non verbal, in his mid 40s, he stopped speaking when he was 2, she never took tylenol, so there has to be a link to something else, 3 of her kids are fine, but the 4th was fine til he was 2 then he just stopped talking and that was the end of it
My sons are 54 and almost 59. I don’t remember takingTylenol during either pregnancy. I don’t remember my doctor telling me to take it. If I took anything, it was aspirin. The Tylenol murders took place in Chicago in 1982. I’m sure that didn’t do much for Tylenol’s sales. Growing up we were always given aspirin. My mother never gave us baby aspirin. She quartered a regular Bayer aspirin, crushed it between two spoons, added a little water and sugar to it, and gave it to us that way.
I have very high functioning Autism. It was so rare in the early 80’s, that they didn’t know what it was for years.
Chemical imbalance during pregnancy? I've never known anyone who had a child with autism. My mother smoked while pregnant with us four kids. I was the baby born in 1947, and the only one in my family that never smoked, and I'm the only one left. I'm 78. No one else made it past 74. Three never made it to 70.
What was it that alerted them to that possibility?
...we found that prenatal exposures to acetaminophen may increase the risk in children of receiving a hospital diagnosis of HKD or ADHD medication and of exhibiting ADHD-like behaviors, with higher use frequency increasing risk in an exposure-response manner. Because the exposure is frequent, these associations might explain some of the increasing incidence in HKD/ADHD but further studies are needed.
As for why this is coming out now, I'm wondering if it's to take the heat off vaccines.
Betcha.
In 1966 or 67, our oldest son was given tylenol liquid in a military clinic.
That was the first time I heard of it.
I don’t think I took any tylenol when we were expecting our youngest son in ‘68 because I thought of it as a pediatric med.
Interesting though. There’s knowns & unknowns... perfect for AI to chew on.
I went back to crawling after walking
Doesn’t seem to open!
“… I was pregnant with my 4 children in the late 1970s…
I never would take Tylenol.“
Good point. If there is a connection, then there should be a drop off in autism for kids born during the cyanide/Tylenol scare of 1982.
Agree, so far nothing is conclusive.
Ops, it finally opened.
Thalidomide is a drug that was marketed as a sedative and treatment for morning sickness in pregnant women in the late 50s and early 60s. Only, it had a much more than a small side effect, the drug caused severe malformation of limbs in the fetus, and children were born with “flipper” arms and feet, and was yanked from the market with alacrity. The effects, however, lived on for a full generation as the “thalidomide babies”, who needed intensive and extended medical assistance, matured, aged, and most of them died a premature death.
Tylenol is recognized as a drug with near-toxic effect on certain of the body tissues, particularly the liver, but until now its effects on the fetus within the pregnant mother has not been much publicized. It was probably known a long time ago, but there was little effort to explore this effect until somebody got around to asking a “what if” question. Then came the question of the liability that would be suffered by the drug manufacturers if revealed.
Tylenol had its own problems with possibility of a massive liability, when it was discovered that someone had tampered with the product on drugstore shelves, and in October of 1982, investigators made the connection between the poisoning deaths and Tylenol in the Chicago area. The manufacturer moved swiftly to remove and destroy ALL existing stocks of Tylenol, and reintroduced the drug with a “tamper-proof” packaging, which was quickly adopted by virtually every other manufacturer of OTC drugs in the US and many foreign countries. At the time, this was considered to be the greatest public relations move of any corporation ever to have taken to preserve the faith of the general public and regulators.
Thalidomide was never approved in the United States, because of one woman - Frances Kelsey, who worked for the FDA. That is why only 17 cases occurred in the U.S., on test subjects.
Works for me...
Here’s the takeaway...
At least ten years ago there were a number of studies that suggest acetaminophen could cause neurological defects in their children if taken by women during pregnancy, and that further studies were required.
So the further studies were done and, happy day, acetaminophen turned out to be safe as houses.
Now in the last two or three years, note the timing, all of a sudden acetaminophen is implicated in neurological defects.
But pediatric vaccinations, no issues there.
See where I’m going with this?
If not, a quote by William Blake...
“A truth that’s told with bad intent, Beats all the lies you can invent.”
Note to RFK, Jr: Don’t allow Big Pharma and Big Med to convince you to stop looking now that acetaminophen has been fingered.
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