Did Tylenol recommend using products during pregnancy? Company clarifies amid Trump's autism claim
A 2017 X post from Tylenol has gone viral, where the company said “We actually don't recommend using any of our products while pregnant.”
An old post by Tylenol has resurfaced after President Donald Trump linked it to autism, during an announcement from the White House this Monday.
“We actually don’t recommend using any of our products while pregnant,” Tylenol wrote on its X account.
This post was shared not just by the US Health and Human Services, but also by the White House, which carried it along with a photo of Trump holding a hat which read ‘Trump was right about everything.’ As per Bloomberg, shares of Tylenol parent company Kenvue Inc. fell after the HHS X post appeared, and closed down 2.2 percent in New York.
After this, a company spokesperson noted that the old post lacked proper context.
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“This eight-year-old consumer response is incomplete and did not address our full guidance on the safe use of Tylenol,” they said in an emailed statement to Bloomberg, while maintaining that acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, is the safest pain reliever option for those who are pregnant.
What Donald Trump said about Tylenol
“Don't take Tylenol,” Trump had instructed pregnant women during the news conference. He also urged mothers not to give their infants the drug, known by the generic name acetaminophen in the US or paracetamol in most other countries.
Further, Trump fueled long-debunked claims that ingredients in vaccines or timing shots close together could contribute to rising rates of autism in the country, without providing medical evidence.
Trump also announced during the event that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) would begin notifying doctors that the use of acetaminophen “can be associated” with an increased risk of autism. However, he did not immediately provide justification for the new recommendation.
The announcement, which appeared to rely on existing studies rather than significant new research, came as the Make America Healthy Again movement has been pushing for answers on the causes of autism. It also shed light on Trump’s own long-held fascination with autism and his trepidation about the childhood vaccine schedule. Medical experts said Trump's remarks were irresponsible.
(With Bloomberg and AP inputs)
