WASHINGTON: Paracetamol in pregnancy does not cause autism, a major study has found, the Telegraph reported.
Experts said the “gold standard” systematic review unpicked the largest and most rigorous studies to establish that there was no link between the drug and autism, ADHD or intellectual disabilities.
It comes after Donald Trump, the US president, said women should “fight like hell” to avoid taking the painkiller in pregnancy, and instead “tough it out”.
Those comments in September were criticised by scientists around the world.
Experts said they hoped the findings from the new international study, published in the journal The Lancet Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Women’s Health, would “bring the matter to a close”.
Scientists reviewed 43 studies, including data for 262,852 children assessed for autism, 335,255 for ADHD and 406,681 for intellectual disability.
The study was launched in response to the claims made by the US president and Robert F Kennedy Jr, his health secretary, that the common painkiller, known as Tylenol in the US, causes learning disorders.
Studies deemed eligible for the review compared pregnancies with and without exposure to paracetamol, as well as looking at validated questionnaires or medical records on medical outcomes. They also looked at other illnesses mothers had and the treatments they received.
Some 43 studies were included in the review, which looked at all the data, while 17 were included in a meta-analysis, which combined findings. Most of the research included sibling comparisons, which are seen as a robust way of examining trends. These studies compare children born to the same mother, where in one pregnancy where she took paracetamol and another pregnancy she did not take paracetamol.
The method is particularly reliable because it has fewer external variables, with siblings more likely to share genes, environments and socio-economic status.
The study’s authors wrote: “This systematic review and meta-analysis found no evidence that maternal paracetamol use during pregnancy increases the risk of autism spectrum disorder, ADHD, or intellectual disability among children.
“The null findings remained consistent when analyses were harmonised to studies with longer follow-up, those employing sibling comparisons, and those at low risk of bias.”Experts said the analysis was the most rigorous to date to examine the issue.
