Streeting rebuts Trump’s paracetamol-autism claims, urging public to heed NHS guidance

Health Secretary Wes Streeting on Monday urged Britons to listen to the NHS and medical experts rather than Donald Trump’s claims about paracetamol and autism, saying public health messaging should be science-based.

Speaking during a television appearance, Streeting said the public should not pay attention to the former U.S. president’s assertions that exposure to paracetamol in the womb could drive rising autism and ADHD diagnoses. He noted that a major Swedish study published in 2024, which followed about 2.4 million children, did not support those claims. "I would just say to people watching, don’t pay any attention whatsoever to what Donald Trump says about medicine. In fact, don’t take even take my word for it, as a politician—listen to British doctors, British scientists, the NHS. It’s really important that a time when you know there is scepticism—and I don’t think scepticism itself, asking questions is in itself a bad thing, by all means, ask questions – but we’ve got to follow medical science," Streeting said.

Paracetamol—known in some places as acetaminophen and commonly sold as Tylenol—has long been a staple for treating pain, headaches and fever during pregnancy. The NHS currently recommends paracetamol as the first‑choice painkiller for expectant mothers, but only for short periods and at the lowest effective dose. Across the U.K., around half of pregnant women take paracetamol, while in the United States the figure is about 65 percent. Health chiefs advise that only certain people — such as those with liver or kidney disease or taking epilepsy medication — should exercise extra caution.

Dozens of studies have linked paracetamol to higher rates of autism and ADHD, though findings have not been consistent. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, the U.K. medicines regulator, has issued a formal statement dismissing a causal link and reiterating that its guidance rests on the best available evidence. Dr. Alison Cave, the MHRA’s chief safety officer, said patient safety is the regulator’s top priority and that there is no evidence that taking paracetamol during pregnancy causes autism. She added that untreated pain and fever can pose risks to the unborn baby, so managing symptoms with the recommended treatment remains important.

Global experts weighed in on the issue, with several researchers cautioning against drawing causal conclusions from observational data. Dr. Monique Botha, an associate professor of social and developmental psychology at Durham University, described the claims as fear mongering and said there is no robust evidence of a causal relationship. She warned that sensational headlines could stigmatize families and deter pregnant people from seeking appropriate care. Dr. Hannah Kirk, a developmental psychology lecturer at Monash University, echoed that no study has proven a causal link, noting that association does not prove causation and that fever itself poses risks that may be mitigated by treatment.

As Trump has repeatedly linked autism rates to prenatal exposure to paracetamol, he signaled during a detour at Charlie Kirk’s memorial service that an announcement on autism was forthcoming. He has framed the issue as a potential breakthrough, but health experts cautioned that the science remains unsettled and that a premature focus on a single drug could mislead the public. Separately, a federal review launched in the United States to examine drivers of rising autism diagnoses has drawn attention to the broader context of research, signaling that debate over risk factors will continue to evolve.

In a large international analysis published recently by Mount Sinai Hospital and Harvard’s School of Public Health, researchers analyzed data from roughly 2.48 million births and used a sibling‑comparison approach to control for genetic and familial factors. When researchers matched siblings, any apparent link between paracetamol use in pregnancy and autism largely disappeared, suggesting that genetic or maternal health factors may better explain the associations observed in some studies. The authors cautioned that while this reduces the likelihood of a direct causal effect, it does not eliminate the possibility of nuanced risk factors that require further investigation. They also noted that treating fever during pregnancy remains important, and that fever itself has been linked to adverse outcomes when unmanaged.

Professor Stephen Griffin, an infectious disease expert at the University of Leeds, argued that blaming parents undermines the complexity of autism, describing the focus on a single medication as "just unbelievably cruel" and not supported by the broader body of evidence. Professor Dimitrios Siassakos, an obstetrics and gynecology expert at University College London, warned that overemphasizing paracetamol could deter families from using one of the safest medications available when needed.

The NHS’s current guidance remains unchanged: paracetamol is recommended as the first‑line analgesic for expectant mothers when used for the shortest duration at the lowest effective dose. The public health consensus emphasizes balancing pain and fever relief with the need to minimize any potential risks, and to consult healthcare professionals for individual circumstances. The discourse surrounding paracetamol and autism highlights the ongoing need for robust research and careful interpretation of observational data, particularly in the context of rising demands on pediatric and maternal health services.

In England, health data continue to show pressure on child services. NHS figures from December 2024 show almost 130,000 under‑18s waiting for an assessment, a figure that has drawn concern from children's advocates about delays and the long-term impact on families. Autism is a neurodevelopmental condition present from birth, though recognition may occur later in life, and experts emphasize that it exists on a spectrum, with a range of support needs—from independent living to full-time care.