Overview

• At a House Democratic Policy Committee session, autism researchers condemned the administration’s acetaminophen–autism claims as reckless, with University of Pennsylvania’s David Mandell dismissing them as unsupported.
• President Donald Trump said the FDA will instruct physicians to warn that acetaminophen use in pregnancy can be associated with higher autism risk and urged women to limit use unless medically necessary.
• In an NIH-funded review summarized by clinicians, 27 of 46 studies reported associations between prenatal acetaminophen and neurodevelopmental diagnoses, but the findings are correlational, and a large 2024 Swedish sibling study found no elevated autism risk after controlling for familial factors.
• OB‑GYNs report growing patient confusion, and ACOG has reiterated that acetaminophen remains the preferred option for treating fever or significant pain in pregnancy because untreated fever can endanger the fetus.
• Public‑health experts warned that alarmist messaging is leading some women to avoid needed treatment, which they say could harm pregnancies and children.