“Autism is to the stars! There has been an increase of 400% of autism cases, today they announce historical steps to combat this crisis “. So Donald Trump opened briefing to the White House last night in which he announced new measures aimed at decreasing the incidence of the autism spectrum disorder in the unborn child.
The announcement
The event was held in the oval studio of the White House with the presence, as well as Trump and the Secretary of Health Robert Kennedy Jrof the director of the National Institute of Health Jay Bhattacharya and of the administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Mehmet Oz.
During briefing, Trump said the American administration has come to the conclusion that the use of paracetamol (The active ingredient of Tylenol, a drug widely used in America) during pregnancy could be connected to autism in children. «As for the Tylenol … don’t take it! Don’t take it! », It was Trump’s comment, who added:« I will clearly say it. It is not good ».
The Federal Drugs Administration (FDA) will send a communication to the doctors by recommending that women limit the use of Tylenol during pregnancyusing it only in case of medical need, such as very high fever episodes.
Health secretary Robert Kennedy Jr spoke of “autism epidemic”, reiterating a central theme of his agenda “Make America Healthy Again”. Kennedy claimed that autism has increased by 400% and that the administration has identified environmental factors and doctors as possible causes. Has announced that the FDA will change the security label of the paracetamol And that will send a “Dear Doctor Letter” to inform doctors about potential risks.
Parallel to the alarm on the Tylenol, the administration has promoted a drug called leukovorin as a potential treatment for autism symptoms. The FDA has in fact approved the drug for the treatment of children with cerebral deficiency of folato which have autistic symptoms.
Oz has specified that Medicaid, in collaboration with the States, will cover the drug when prescribed, and has expressed confidence that insurance companies will quickly follow this initiative.
There leukovorin It is a derivative of the folic acid previously used to mitigate the side effects of some chemotherapy treatments. According to the administration’s health authorities, the drug can help some children with autism bypassing blocks in the transport of the mouth in the brain.
Clinical studies have shown that up to 60% of children with autism lacking in folato can show improvements in verbal communication if treated with leukovorin.
The disputes
The announcement aroused immediate disputes in the scientific community. The American College of Obstricians and Gynecologists called “highly worrying»And” irresponsible “the suggestions that Acetaminofen causes autism, underlining that they continue to recommend it as the safer pain reliever during pregnancy.
The research on the connection between acetaminophen and autism has produced contrasting results over the years. While some studies have suggested a possible association, others have not found any causal connection.
The mainstream scientific community considers autism the result of a complex interaction of genetic and environmental factors, and the increase in diagnoses is mainly attributed to the improvement of the detection methods rather than a single environmental cause.
The approach reflects Kennedy’s wider strategy to investigate what he calls “autism epidemic” through the examination of environmental factors he believes have been neglected by traditional medical establishment.
