“If you're pregnant, don't take Tylenol. ... During pregnancy, [it] can be associated with a very increased risk of autism.”

White House autism press conference (counter-productive advice elaboration)

No reputable study has ever shown that acetaminophen (Tylenol) causes autism. As the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists put it after Trump's September 22, 2025 announcement, "not a single reputable study has successfully concluded that the use of acetaminophen in any trimester of pregnancy causes neurodevelopmental disorders in children," a question researchers have studied for more than 20 years. The two largest, most rigorous investigations used sibling-control designs that filter out shared genetics and family environment, and both found no association between prenatal acetaminophen use and autism. Trump's advice is not just unsupported. It is dangerous. Acetaminophen is the only widely recommended pain and fever reducer in pregnancy because alternatives like NSAIDs (ibuprofen, aspirin) can harm the developing fetus. The Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine warns that untreated high fever in pregnancy can itself cause miscarriage, birth defects, and premature birth. Maternal fever is a documented risk factor for adverse neurodevelopment, so refusing the standard treatment for fever could increase the very harms Trump claims to prevent. The claim has already done measurable damage. After the warning, a March 2026 NPR report documented that Tylenol use among pregnant women treated in emergency rooms dropped, and a January 2026 review of new research reinforced that there is no credible autism link. ACOG summed up the medical consensus: "The conditions people use acetaminophen to treat during pregnancy are far more dangerous than any theoretical risks." "Not a single reputable study has successfully concluded that the use of acetaminophen in any trimester of pregnancy causes neurodevelopmental disorders in children." — American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG)