Trump and Bobby Jr. are WRONG AGAIN
By City
St George's, University of London
Edited by Sadie Harley, reviewed
by Robert Egan
Researchers conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis
of 43 existing studies to determine whether acetaminophen was safe to use in
pregnancy or not. This was in response to public concerns following claims back
in September 2025 that suggested taking acetaminophen during pregnancy might
impact the neurodevelopment of those children and increase their risk of
autism.
The claims were based on earlier studies that reported small
associations between acetaminophen in pregnancy and increased risks of autism.
However, these were often based on studies prone to biases, including being
limited by the type of data collected and not exploring comparisons between
siblings to account for family history, which is vital information.
The team looked at 43 studies with the highest quality and
most rigorous research methods and compared pregnancies where the mother had
taken acetaminophen to pregnancies where they had not taken the drug.
They pooled the results of sibling comparison studies that compared siblings born to the same mother, where one pregnancy involved acetaminophen exposure and another did not. This design helps control for shared genetics, family environment and long-term parental characteristics that traditional studies cannot fully account for.
Across the sibling-comparison studies, data included 262,852 children assessed for autism, 335,255 for ADHD and 406,681 for intellectual disability. When compared to pregnancies with no exposure to acetaminophen, it was confirmed that taking acetaminophen in pregnancy was not linked to childhood autism, ADHD or intellectual disability.
Professor Asma Khalil, professor of obstetrics and maternal
fetal medicine at City St George's, University of London and consultant
obstetrician, who led the study, said, "Our findings suggest that
previously reported links are likely to be explained by genetic predisposition
or other maternal factors such as fever or underlying pain, rather than a
direct effect of the acetaminophen itself.
"The message is clear: Acetaminophen remains a safe
option during pregnancy when taken as guided. This is important as
acetaminophen is the first-line medication we recommend for pregnant women in
pain or with a fever, and so they should feel reassured that they still have a
safe option to relieve them of their symptoms."
All studies were assessed for their quality based on the
Quality In Prognosis Studies (QUIPS) tool that evaluates numerous factors in
the way the research has been conducted to determine the risk of bias, another
strength of this work. The lack of association between taking acetaminophen
during pregnancy and the risk of the child having autism, ADHD or intellectual
disabilities also remained in the studies deemed to be at low risk of bias (and
therefore highest quality), and in those which had a longer follow-up period of
over five years.
The authors note that a limitation of the current study was
that it was not possible to analyze smaller groups in the studies with sibling
comparisons based on which trimester of pregnancy acetaminophen was consumed
in, sex of the baby or how often acetaminophen was taken, because too few of
the existing studies reported these data.
Overall, the findings of the study support the
recommendations made by major medical organizations worldwide. The researchers
hope that this gold-standard review will put an end to any skepticism about
using acetaminophen during pregnancy, as avoiding acetaminophen for significant
pain or fever can expose both mother and baby to known risks, particularly
untreated maternal fever.
More information
Prenatal paracetamol exposure and child neurodevelopment: a
systematic review and meta-analysis, DOI:
10.1016/S3050-5038(25)00211-0
