Underwhelmed by the small number of studies looked at for the article about autism and paracetamol.
JAMA Pediatr. 2014 Apr;168(4):313-20. doi: 10.1001/jamapediatrics.2013.4914.
Acetaminophen use during pregnancy, behavioral problems, and hyperkinetic disorders.
Liew Z1, Ritz B2, Rebordosa C3, Lee PC4, Olsen J5.
Author information
Abstract i
IMPORTANCE:
Acetaminophen (paracetamol) is the most commonly used medication for pain and fever during pregnancy in many countries. Research data suggest that acetaminophen is a hormone disruptor, and abnormal hormonal exposures in pregnancy may influence fetal brain development.
Referencing the Cochrane report from 13 years ago is insufficiently reassuring, as that was really inconclusive, from limited data - it doesn't in fact say that paracetamol is safe for children.
Since then more studies suggested causal links between the drug and brain disorders: eg Stephen Schultz Ph.D's study, which found children given paracetamol after the MMR vaccine developed autism 8 times as often as those given ibuprofen; later a study from Norway associated paracetamol in pregnancy with developmental problems including attention deficits and aggression which showed up at 3 years old; and another study from Denmark which also linked paracetamol in pregnancy to higher incidences of severe attention deficit, correllated to the period of time which paracetamol was used. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/266...
RE: Schultz altmedrev.com/publications/....
Doctor Cindy Schneider is medical director for the Center for Autism Research and Education at Phoenix, and says “There appears to be an association between acetaminophen use during pregnancy and an increased incidence of maternal blood clots, pulmonary embolism, preterm labor, and preeclampsia. There is considerable risk to the developing fetus as well. Both animal and human studies have documented an increase in genital birth defects in males exposed to acetaminophen during pregnancy, and defects of the heart, abdominal wall, and face have also been reported.”
Potential molecular mechanisms are being described to explain paracetamol's relationship to autism. William Shaw is a biochemist who observed that paracetamol can inhibit the body's processing of toxins, resulting in depletion of glutathione and hence a flood of toxins not cleared from the body and brain. Another paediatrician called Robert Sears , author of The Autism Book, also became aware a few years ago of potential concerns about paracetamol's reduction of glutathione production.
William Parker Ph.D has worked on immune diseases for over a decade . He says that in modern society chemicals, and he names paracetamol/acetaminophen specifically, can increase oxidative stress. He read a recent study which indicates that the effects of giving paracetamol to babies soon after they are born are much more significant than those which can occur during pregnancy: ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/266...
So evidence against paracetamol is stacking up - please don't dismiss it .
