Wes Streeting has rejected Donald Trump's unproven claims link between taking paracetamol during pregnancy and autism, urging expectant mothers to ignore the US President's remarks.
The health secretary disputed Trump's statements, which medical experts have stressed are not based on evidenceas part of a push to reassure expectant mothers in the UK.
“Frankly, I trust the doctors more than President Trump on this issue,” Streeting told ITV's Lorraine.
“I just have to make this clear: there is no evidence linking the use of paracetamol by pregnant women with autism in their children.
“In fact, back in 2024 there was a large study done in Sweden involving 2.4 million children and it didn't support these claims. So I would just say to people watching: don't pay any attention to the fact that Donald Trump talks about medicine. In fact, don't even take my word for it as a politician. Listen to British doctors, British scientists, the National Health System.
“It's very important that while you know there is skepticism – and I don't think skepticism, asking questions, is a bad thing in itself, by all means ask questions – we have to follow the medical science.”
Trump said there had been a “dramatic rise” in autism cases, citing acetaminophen as the cause and advising women not to take the drug during pregnancy. US authorities intend for the drug, known there as Tylenol, to have labels linking it to a supposed higher risk of autism in the future.
British health agencies and experts are making a concerted effort to counter what Trump has called “political disinformation.”
Streeting's Department of Health and Social Care helped doctors and mothers with large social media followings on parenting accounts post evidence-based information about paracetamol in media interviews and on their online platforms.
The DHSC coordinated efforts to ensure that influential non-government people played a key role in convincing the public that paracetamol was safe to take during pregnancy, along with representatives from Whitehall agencies and the NHS.
Professor Sir Andrew Pollard, the outgoing chairman of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization, which advises ministers, said he was “really concerned that this rise in misinformation from places including government in the United States is really eroding trust around the world.”
Dr Alison Cave, chief safety officer at the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the UK's medicines regulator, said pregnant women should continue to take paracetamol as a pain reliever, in line with existing guidelines.
“Untreated pain and fever can pose a risk to the unborn baby, so it is important to control these symptoms with recommended treatment,” Cave added.
Professor Claire Anderson, president of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, said that “paracetamol has been used safely by millions of people for decades, including during pregnancy, when taken as directed.”
The National Autistic Society has expressed alarm about Trump and his health secretary. Robert F. Kennedy Jr.blaming paracetamol for autism in US children.
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“The persistent misinformation about autism from President Trump and Robert Kennedy Jr risks undermining decades of research by respected experts in the field,” said Mel Merritt, the charity’s head of policy and campaigns.
“It is clear that autistic people will be alarmed and scared by this announcement and we call on our government and the NHS to support autistic people and condemn this misinformation. Otherwise you risk creating further fear, stigma and harm.”
Medical and scientific experts in the UK condemned Trump's remarks.
“There is a long history of a cottage industry of false causes and 'cure' offered for autism that preys on the hopes and fears of desperate people,” said Dr Stephen Cupp, senior lecturer in psychology at the University of Portsmouth and member of the Coalition. Autism Scientists.
“It’s sad that unqualified demagogues continue to ignore science.”
Professor Laurie Tomlinson, National Institute for Health Research Professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said: “As well as my research experience, I am also the mother of two children with autism and I know this announcement will cause stress and guilt for many parents who often wonder if they are at fault.
“I urge these parents to focus on the countless reputable pieces of evidence published to date that show no link between paracetamol and autism, and to seek medical advice from their GP or medical practitioner.
“I urge you not to get caught up in political misinformation that tries to find a ‘simple’ answer to how autism develops and doesn’t help our children.”
