Tylenol-Mimaker shares suffered a sensation after reporting RFK JR

Tylenol-MM-Maker Kenvue said its popular painkillers were safe because the company’s stock dropped sharply in U.S. Secretary of Health Robert F Kennedy JR, which could potentially have a link between pregnancy and the use of medications in autism.

Kenvue shares fell 14% before recovering slightly by the end of Friday as the company spoke to defend its over-the-counter medication.

The company has faced lawsuits for years alleging that there may be a link between autism and the use of Tylenol, known in the UK as paracetamol.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said the claims about its highly anticipated autism report are speculation.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Kennedy is expected to issue findings this month, citing the use of Tylenol as a potential cause of autism during pregnancy.

The newspaper said a federal report is expected to recommend a specific type of vitamin folic acid to treat the disease.

“We are using gold standard science to reach an unprecedented rise in autism rate in the United States,” the Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement to the BBC.

American doctors usually recommend pregnant women who need pain relief to take Tylenol or another form of acetaminophen instead of ibuprofen, which is sold in advil.

Researchers point out that acetaminophen is important in treating fever and pain in pregnant women, which can also harm children.

“We have been evaluating science and continue to believe that there is no causal relationship between the use of acetaminophen during pregnancy and autism,” Kenvue said in a statement.

The company said leading medical organizations have reached consensus on the safety of acetaminophen and its use during pregnancy.

It added: “We recommend that mothers be expected to talk to health care professionals before taking any over-the-counter medications, including acetaminophen.”

American obstetricians and gynecologists also recommend that pregnant women consult their doctor before using acetaminophen, as with all medications.

“There is no clear evidence for the direct relationship between cautionary use of acetaminophen during pregnancy and fetal development issues,” Christopher Zahn, its head of clinical practice, said in a statement to Reuters news agency.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has similar advice Its website.

According to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), autism can lead to communication and social behavior challenges, with an estimated impact on 31 American children.

Kennedy – a vaccine skeptic – has long raised concerns about the rise of autism, but it is unclear whether the health department will blame vaccinations in an upcoming report.

“By September, we will know what causes the autism epidemic,” the health secretary said in a spring cabinet meeting with President Donald Trump.

Scientists attribute at least part of autism to increased awareness and an ever-expanding definition of disease. Researchers have also been studying environmental factors.

Research on acetaminophen has no conclusion on any autism link.

Last month, experts from Mount Sinai Icahn School of Medicine and Harvard’s TH Chan School of Public Health analyzed 46 previously published epidemiological studies.

They found that 27 of them reported a link between pregnant women’s use of acetaminophen and an increased risk of neurodevelopmental diseases such as autism.

The other nine have no obvious connections, and the other four indicate protective effects.

Dr. Nathaniel Denicola, who advises American obstetricians and gynecologists, told The New York Times that the study has not changed much.

“The conclusion of this article is that Tylenol should be used wisely at the lowest dose, most frequent intervals,” he said.

In 2021, an international team of 91 scientists and clinicians issued a consensus statement urging painkillers to be used during pregnancy.

However, a 2024 study in the journal of the American Medical Association, which involves 2.4 million children in Sweden, has no evidence to support causality.

The manufacturer of Tylenol is facing hundreds of lawsuits claiming that if the mother takes the drug during pregnancy, it could lead to autism.

But last August, a U.S. judge dismissed all cases in the federal court after finding a lack of scientific evidence from expert witnesses.

Plaintiff challenged the decision in the U.S. Court of Appeal.