Whoa, Slow Down, Trump and RFK - What The Tylenol Studies Actually Say

First things first, my blog has apparently successful switched to an encrypted https address. 😊

Otherwise ... 

Wait, so ... according to RFK, it was vaccines that caused autism - now it's Tylenol? 

Which is it? Why not both? Why not any ole pharma company that pops in your head (that perhaps doesn't support your politics?)

As long as we're focused on possible environmental causes, why just pharmaceuticals, completely ignoring pollutants or agribusiness chemicals?

Because that wouldn't support your agendas of anti-climate change/corporations polluting the environment as much as they want? 

So what do the Tylenol studies actually say?

Well, not what Trump and RFK say they do.

Read them for yourselves - HERE.

In 46 small research studies, some studies - but not all - found a correlation between Tylenol used during pregnancy and autism - and thus pronounced inconclusive, needing further study.

Even if all of the small studies found there was a correlation - which they did NOT - "correlation" does NOT mean "cause."

In fact, the actual the cause very well could be the reason they're taking Tylenol to begin with, some undetected/unknown virus contracted during pregnancy, for all we know - and that's just it, we don't know.

I'm not saying Tylenol does not cause autism either - I'm saying this needs further study with a larger random sample and better controls to rule out bias or variables.

I'm saying you cannot take a hypothesis and pronounce it fact  especially when the studies contradicted each other.

Because therein lies the problem with small studies - they often contradict each other.

If you don't use at least the statistical "magic number" of a random sample of 1,200 participants in the study (when possible, depending on disease prevalence), your results will vary because they aren't using the same controls - so mostly due to bias or a variables from study center to study center that were introduced that affected the outcome of the study.

Regardless, pregnant women for years have avoided Tylenol (except during labor), including me, 31 years ago - or any drug, for that matter - including hair dye - just to be safe. 

But that doesn't mean non-pregnant adults shouldn't take Tylenol as Trump said.

In fact, IV acetaminophen/Tylenol has been found to be a very effective painkiller after surgery versus opioids.

Would you prefer the opioid epidemic?

Lastly, I understand that autism didn't exist, as far as we know, until the last century.

However, that doesn't necessarily mean it's environmental in a pharmaceutical sense, there are pollutants to consider also.

And like I said, it could also be an as-of-yet undetected or unknown virus obtained during pregnancy, for all we know - and that's just it, we don't know.


We cannot just pronounce any old random things developed within the last century that pops into our heads as the cause without proof.

It's super early and super socially irresponsible to do so and is tantamount to witch-hunt panics to do so, at this stage.