🔗 Share this article

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is taking legal action against the manufacturers of acetaminophen, claiming the corporations hid alleged dangers that the drug created to pediatric brain development.

This legal action follows four weeks after President Donald Trump promoted an unproven link between using acetaminophen - also known as acetaminophen - while pregnant and autism in children.

The attorney general is taking legal action against the pharmaceutical giant, which formerly manufactured the drug, the only pain reliever recommended for women during pregnancy, and Kenvue, which currently produces it.

In a statement, he stated they "betrayed America by gaining financially from pain and promoting medication ignoring the potential hazards."

The manufacturer asserts there is insufficient reliable data connecting Tylenol to autism.

"These manufacturers misled for generations, knowingly endangering countless individuals to increase profits," the attorney general, from the Republican party, said.

The manufacturer said in a statement that it was "deeply concerned by the perpetuation of misinformation on the safety of acetaminophen and the potential impact that could have on the health of US mothers and children."

On its online platform, Kenvue also stated it had "regularly reviewed the relevant science and there is insufficient valid information that indicates a verified association between taking acetaminophen and autism."

Organizations acting on behalf of medical professionals and health professionals agree.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists has declared paracetamol - the key substance in Tylenol - is one of the few options for pregnant women to manage pain and fever, which can create serious health risks if ignored.

"In more than two decades of investigation on the utilization of paracetamol in gestation, zero credible investigations has conclusively proven that the use of acetaminophen in any stage of pregnancy leads to neurological conditions in children," the association commented.

The court filing mentions current declarations from the former administration in asserting the drug is potentially dangerous.

Recently, Trump generated worry from health experts when he instructed pregnant women to "resist strongly" not to use acetaminophen when ill.

Federal regulators then released a statement that physicians should contemplate reducing the usage of acetaminophen, while also stating that "a direct connection" between the medication and autism in young ones has not been established.

The Health Department head Kennedy, who oversees the Food and Drug Administration, had vowed in April to conduct "comprehensive study program" that would establish the origin of autism spectrum disorder in a limited time.

But specialists warned that identifying a unique factor of autism - believed by scientists to be the result of a complex mix of inherited and surrounding conditions - would prove challenging.

Autism spectrum disorder is a form of lifelong neurodivergence and condition that impacts how persons perceive and engage with the environment, and is diagnosed using doctors' observations.

In his court filing, Paxton - who supports Trump who is seeking the Senate - claims Kenvue and Johnson & Johnson "intentionally overlooked and attempted to silence the science" around paracetamol and autism.

The lawsuit aims to force the corporations "remove any promotional materials" that asserts Tylenol is reliable for pregnant women.

The Texas lawsuit mirrors the complaints of a group of parents of children with autism spectrum disorder and ADHD who took legal action against the manufacturers of Tylenol in recently.

Judicial authorities threw out the lawsuit, saying research from the family's specialists was lacking definitive proof.