Donald Trump administration link di use of Tylenol for pregnant women to autism on Monday even though no be wetin medical guidelines tok.
Dis na afta di president bin announce on Friday say e get “amazing” announcement about di disorder as e tell tori pipo say, “autism dey veri out of control… I tink we, maybe, get reason why”.
Some studies show small link between pregnant women wey dey take acetaminophen wey be di main ingredient for Tylenol, and autism, but dis findings no dey consistent and no prove say di drug dey cause autism.
Wettin be Tylenol?
Tylenol na pain melecine wey dem dey buy ova di counter wey di active ingredient dem dey call acetaminophen for di US and paracetamol for oda parts of di world.
Dem dey sell am for different brand names and dem even get di type wey dem make for babies and small pikin dem. Na normal tin wey dem dey take treat pain and fever worldwide.
E dey safe for women wey carry belle?
Major medical groups and goments worldwide say di melecine dey safe for pregnant women to use.
Di American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology tok say doctors all ova di kontri don list Tylenol alias paracetamol as one of di only painkillers wey dey okay for pregnant pipo.
Di group tok say, “studies wey dem don do bifor show say no clear evidence dey wey directly link di prudent use of acetaminophen for any trimester to fetal developmental issues”.
Di UK National Health Service dey guide say paracetamol na di “first choice” for painkiller for women wey get belle. E say “e dey common to take am for pregnancy and no dey harm pikin.”
Tylenol maker Kenvue and US doctors dey advice expectant mothers make dem dey follow dia healthcare sabi pipo tok bifor dem dey take ova di counter melecines.
Trump administration dey advice pregnant women to take di pain killer only wen dem get high fevers.
Untreated high fevers fit cause harm to both di mama and di pikin for di belle.
Tylenol fit cause autism?>
For April, di oga of di US Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F Kennedy Jr bin promise “massive testing and research efforts” to find wetin dey cause autism in five months.
But sabi pipo don warn say to find di cause of autism (wey be complex syndrome wey dem don dey research for decades) no go dey simple.
Di popular view of researchers be say no one single cause of autism dey, as dem believe say na becos of complex mix of genetic and environmental factors.
For August, one review of research wey di dean of Harvard University Chan School of Public Health bin lead find out say pikin fit dey more likely to get autism and oda neurodevelopmental disorders wen dem dey exposed to Tylenol for inside belle.
Di researchers argue say dem need take some steps to limit how dem dey take dis drug but di pain reliever go dey important for treating maternal fever and pain.
But anoda study wey dem publish for 2024 find out say no relationship dey to expose Tylenol and autism.
Monique Botha, na professor for social and developmental psychology at Durham University wey tok say “dia no be robust evidence or convince studies to suggest dia be causal relationship”.
How Tylenol dey work
Drugs wey dey relieve pain (known as analgesics) fit be opioids or non-opioids.
Opioids, wey dem get from di poppy plant or dey make for labs, dem attach to di opiod receptors for brain wey dey cause am to release dopamaine, wey be one hormone wey dey linked to feelings of pleasure.
But dis melecine dey very addictive which na why sabi pipo say e dey best to treat pain wit non opiod medicine like paracetamol.
But dia no be consensus on how paracetamol dey work.
Philip Conaghan wey be di professor of di musculoskeletal medicine for di University of Leeds for di UK.
“E dey likely affect pain perception for di central nervous system and brain and may act for di peripheral regions wit inflammation.”
According to di UK National Health Service, paracetamol dey work by say e dey block chemical messengers for di brain wey dey signal pain and dey regulate bodi temperature.
Theory don dey for a long time say paracetamol dey work by say e block enzyme wey dem dey call cyclooxygenase, or COX wey dey help bring out prostaglandins – hormone-like substances wey dey linked to pain.
Thinking also dey say paracetamol dey work for oda ways. For instance, e dey metabolised for di compound AM404, wey e dey said to play for role for di number of pain pathways.
How often you fit take Tylenol?
Healthcare sabi pipo torchlight why e dey important to stick to paracetamol dosage guidelines for safe use.
Dem argue say e dey rare to see side effects if dem take di right dose for short time.
Di UK NHS say di recommended dose na one or two 500mg tablets, up to four times in 24 hours, or maximum eight tablets for 24 hours.
Dem add say anytin pass dis fit cause severe liver damage or failure, dis na as 5% of di melecine dey turn to di toxic substance, benzoquinone imine, pipo sabi as NAPQI.
Di US Food and Drug Administration date show say paracetamol overdoes na di top cause for liver failure for US between 1998 and 2003.
But for almost half for dis cases na accidental overdose sake of say di FDA say paracetamol dey for 600 melecines so pesin fit no know say dem dey take paracetamol for different medications.
Sabi pipo dey also warn parents to chook eye for dia pikin medications as dem dey pass through different pipo wey dey take care of dem.
Effectiveness
Di World Health Organization dey recommend paracetamol as first line of medication for pain and fever.
If e no work na wen di patient fit increase to weak opiods bifor stronger opiods and den na specialist mata e don turn to.
Paracetamol dey work depending on di pain.
Di UK Cochrane Institute wey dey review and analyse studies wey don dey published tok say e dey work to manage acute migrane and pain afta giving birth and surgery.
But im hand for tins line arthritis of di knees dey seen as “modest”.
And for lower back pain or di discomfort wey cancer dey cause Cochrane Institute say e no dey work pass placebo (wey be treatment wey no get active properties to treat anytin like sugar pills)