Trump makes unfounded claims about Tylenol and repeats discredited link
between vaccines and autism
[September 23, 2025]
By ALI SWENSON and LAURAN NEERGAARD
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Monday used the platform of
the presidency to promote unproven and in some cases discredited ties
between Tylenol, vaccines and autism as his administration announced a
wide-ranging effort to study the causes of the complex brain disorder.
“Don't take Tylenol,” Trump instructed pregnant women around a dozen
times during the unwieldy White House news conference, also urging
mothers not to give their infants the drug, known by the generic name
acetaminophen in the U.S. or paracetamol in most other countries. He
also fueled long-debunked claims that ingredients in vaccines or timing
shots close together could contribute to rising rates of autism in the
U.S., without providing any medical evidence.
The rambling announcement, which appeared to rely on existing studies
rather than significant new research, comes as the Make America Healthy
Again movement has been pushing for answers on the causes of autism. The
diverse coalition of supporters of Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr.
includes several anti-vaccine activists who have long spread debunked
claims that immunizations are responsible.
The announcement also sheds light on Trump’s own long-held fascination
with autism and his trepidation about the childhood vaccine schedule,
even as the president has taken pride in his work to disseminate
COVID-19 vaccines during his first term.
Medical experts said Trump's remarks were irresponsible. New York
University bioethicist Art Caplan said it was “the saddest display of a
lack of evidence, rumors, recycling old myths, lousy advice, outright
lies, and dangerous advice I have ever witnessed by anyone in
authority.”
Trump announced during the event that the Food and Drug Administration
would begin notifying doctors that the use of acetaminophen “can be
associated” with an increased risk of autism, but did not immediately
provide justification for the new recommendation.
Evidence for potential link between Tylenol and autism is not
conclusive
Some studies have raised the possibility that taking acetaminophen
during pregnancy might increase the risk of autism — but many others
haven’t found that concern, said autism expert David Mandell of the
University of Pennsylvania.
One challenge is that it’s hard to disentangle the effects of Tylenol
use from the effects of high fevers during pregnancy. Fevers, especially
in the first trimester, can increase the risk for miscarriages, preterm
birth and other problems, according to the Society for Maternal-Fetal
Medicine.
Trump also urged not giving Tylenol to young children, but scientists
say that research indicates autism develops in the fetal brain.
Responding to Trump’s warnings, the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine
said they still recommend Tylenol as an appropriate option to treat
fever and pain during pregnancy. The president of the American College
of Obstetricians and Gynecologists said Monday that suggestions that
Tylenol use in pregnancy causes autism are “irresponsible when
considering the harmful and confusing message they send to pregnant
patients.”
Trump press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement Monday
evening that the administration “does not believe popping more pills is
always the answer for better health” and that it “will not be deterred
in these efforts as we know millions across America are grateful.”
Tylenol maker Kenvue disputed any link between the drug and autism on
Monday and said in a statement that if pregnant mothers don’t use
Tylenol when in need, they could face a dangerous choice between
suffering fevers or using riskier painkiller alternatives. Shares of
Kenvue Inc. fell 7.5% in trading Monday, reducing the company’s market
value by about $2.6 billion.
Kennedy announced during the news conference that at Trump's urging, he
was launching a new all-agency effort to uncover all the factors that
could be contributing to autism, a question scientists have been
researching for decades.
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Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., speaks as
President Donald Trump listens in the Roosevelt Room of the White
House, Monday, Sept. 22, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark
Schiefelbein)
 Trump administration explores the
potential role of folate
FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary also took the stage to announce it
was taking the first steps to try to approve a folic acid metabolite
called leucovorin as a treatment option for patients believed to
have low levels of folate in the brain. That may include some people
with autism.
Leucovorin is used to counteract the side effects of various
prescription drugs, including chemotherapy and other high-dose
medications that can negatively impact the immune system. It works
by boosting folate levels, a form of vitamin B that’s critical to
the body’s production of healthy red blood cells.
Women already are told to take folic acid before conception and
during pregnancy because it reduces the chances of certain birth
defects known as neural tube defects.
In recent years a handful of studies have suggested positive results
when high-dose folic acid is used to treat children with autism,
with researchers in China and other countries reporting improvements
in social skills and other metrics. Those small studies have been
quickly embraced by some parts of the autism community online.
The theory is that some, not all, children with autism may not
properly metabolize folate, Mandell said. But the recent studies
“are really tiny,” he said. To prove an effect, “we would need an
independent, large, rigorously controlled randomized trial.”
Decades of studies show no link between vaccines and autism
During the press conference, Trump said he's a believer in vaccines
but claimed without evidence that giving vaccinations close together
at the recommended ages has a link to autism. Spacing out shots as
he suggests can lead to an increased risk that children become
infected with a vaccine-preventable disease before returning for
another visit.
Though anti-vaccine activists, including Kennedy, have long
suggested a link between vaccines and autism, widespread scientific
consensus and decades of studies have firmly concluded there isn’t
one.
Autism is not a disease but a complex developmental condition that
affects different people in different ways. It can include delays in
language, learning or social and emotional skills. For some people,
profound autism means being nonverbal and having intellectual
disabilities, but the vast majority of people with autism experience
far milder effects.
The disorder affects 1 in 31 U.S. children today, a sharp rise from
just a few years ago, according to the CDC. Experts say the increase
is mainly due to a new definition for the disorder that now includes
mild cases on a “spectrum” and better diagnoses. They say there is
no single cause to the disorder and say the rhetoric appears to
ignore and undermine decades of science into the genetic and
environmental factors that can play a role.
The announcement is the latest step the administration, driven by
Kennedy and his supporters, has taken to reshape America’s public
health landscape.
Beyond cutbacks at federal health agencies, the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention has been roiled by disagreements over
Kennedy’s vaccine policies. An influential immunization panel
stocked by Kennedy with figures who have been critical of vaccines
last week changed shot guidance for COVID-19 and other diseases.
—
Swenson reported from New York. Associated Press writers Matthew
Perrone and Laura Ungar contributed to this report.
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