By Leela Uppaluri and Emma Birdsong

At a September 22 White House press conference, President Trump, alongside Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, stated that “taking Tylenol during pregnancy can be associated with a very increased risk of autism” for babies. Trump added that pregnant women should “tough it out” and “fight like hell” instead of taking the medication. This message from the White House is misinformed, confusing, and problematic on multiple levels.

It is disturbing that our federal government made an announcement that will affect millions of pregnant women without reliable data to back up its claims. In fact, one of the highest-quality studies on this subject, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) just last year, found no significant associations between use of acetaminophen during pregnancy and children’s risk of autism, ADHD, or intellectual disability. Not surprisingly, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), acetaminophen is the “safest over-the-counter alternative in pregnancy among all analgesics and antipyretics.”

Compounded with the White House’s inaccurate messaging is the negative impact it could have on pregnant women’s emotional well-being. We spoke to Dr. Min, OBGYN at Beth Israel Hospital and parent of Liana Min ’26, specifically about the alleged correlation. Dr. Min made a point that pregnant women are likely to be “very concerned about anything that potentially can harm their babies” and that Trump’s false statements can cause unnecessary emotional harm. Suggesting that Tylenol causes autism in children has the potential to make women worry unnecessarily or even feel guilty for taking Tylenol, even when it has been established that Tylenol is safe and that autism is a multifactorial and largely genetic condition. In this way, such misinformation targets an already vulnerable population, pregnant women, and plays directly upon their fears and deep concern for their babies’ health. 

Even more alarming is that this misinformation can pose real physical risks to unborn children. Women concerned about Tylenol’s effects on their babies, Dr. Min elaborated, “may be inclined not to treat conditions that they should when they’re pregnant, and that can actually increase the risk of other complications” in pregnancy. These “other” complications, like fevers and inflammation, could result in real harm to mothers and their unborn children.  

Beyond its impact on pregnant women, Trump’s statements on Tylenol also harm autistic people themselves, as his framing of the condition is stigmatizing and dismissive. As Ella Troalic ’27 comments, “Trump’s statements make it seem like everyone with autism has something wrong with them, when that’s clearly not true.” The administration’s rhetoric continues to fuel stigma around autism and has the potential to encourage ableism and bullying of autistic people. 

Public figures have a responsibility to speak to us with compassion and accuracy, especially the President of the United States, who, as Dr. Min pointed out, “has the biggest megaphone in the country.” But in the meantime, it is real people—pregnant women and their babies—who could pay the price for such misinformation. Instead of relying on political rhetoric, Dr. Min recommends referencing reliable sources like acog.org, the website of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, as well as well-known sites like Mayo Clinic for accurate, evidence-based information.