Donald Trump’s advice to women not to take paracetamol could potentially lead to an increase in the number of children with autism, Professor Luke O’Neill has warned.
The US President has been widely condemned by scientists after announcing that doctors would be advised not to give pregnant women Tylenol, known as paracetamol in Ireland.
Mr Trump described Tylenol as “no good" for pregnant women and said there is a link between the drug and autism.
Britain's NHS describes paracetamol as, "The first choice of painkiller if you're pregnant. It's commonly taken during pregnancy and does not harm your baby."
On The Pat Kenny Show, Professor O’Neill said Mr Trump’s advice on paracetamol has left scientists “scratching our heads” in disbelief.
“There’s no risk of autism if you take paracetamol - that’s what’s very clear,” he said.
“So, we’re very surprised.
“There was one study in Sweden - 2.5 million children were measured, just on this single issue.
“And there was no risk of autism if the mother took paracetamol.”
US Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks alongside President Donald J. Trump. Picture by: The White House.Professor O’Neill continued that President Trump had not been clear where he had sourced his claims about paracetamol.
“There’s one or two studies correlating paracetamol with autism - correlating,” he said.
“Correlation doesn’t mean causation.
“RFK and co have made a rookie error; you never say correlation is the same as causation.
“What it means is, you can correlate but it might not cause.
“A great analogy is that people who smoke carry matches; that doesn’t mean matches cause lung cancer - it’s the smoking.
“So, the matches correlate with lung cancer, it’s the smoking that causes it.”
A woman holding her pregnant belly. Picture by: Tetra Images, LLC / Alamy.Professor O’Neill added that he believes Mr Trump made the announcement because his controversial Health Secretary, RFK Jr, felt under pressure to please him.
“He told Trump a few months ago, they’re going to crack autism by September, interestingly," Professor O’Neill said.
“September comes around and he goes, ‘Hey, it’s Tylenol’ and Trump doubles down.
“Trump himself, of course, weighs in, ‘Don’t take Tylenol’.”
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Most concerning of all, Professor O’Neill fears Mr Trump’s remarks about paracetamol could potentially increase the number of children who are diagnosed with autism.
“What gets to me is, if you are having an infection as a woman carrying a foetus, there’s a risk of that child having autism - that’s one of the risk factors, infection during pregnancy,” he said.
“Paracetamol limits the damage, potentially of that.
“So, the advice here might actually increase the risk of autism in the population by telling women not to take paracetamol.”
Main image: A split of Luke O'Neill and a woman taking paracetamol. Pictures by: Newstalk and Alamy.com.
