---
title: 'Tylenol and Pregnancy: The Science and Controversy'
source: 'https://youtube.com/watch?v=UrMTNjqdFeA'
video_id: 'UrMTNjqdFeA'
date: 2026-08-10
duration_sec: 1515
---

# Tylenol and Pregnancy: The Science and Controversy

> Source: [Tylenol and Pregnancy: The Science and Controversy](https://youtube.com/watch?v=UrMTNjqdFeA)

## Summary

This video discusses the controversy surrounding Tylenol (acetaminophen) use during pregnancy and its potential link to adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes in children, such as ADHD and autism. The speaker emphasizes that this is a health issue, not a political one, and reviews scientific evidence including observational studies and consensus statements from medical experts.

### Key Points

- **Topic Introduction** [00:01] — The video addresses the controversy around Tylenol use during pregnancy and its association with adverse outcomes like ADHD, developmental issues, and autism. The speaker notes that this has become a political topic, which it should not be.
- **Tylenol and Liver Toxicity** [00:28] — Acetaminophen (Tylenol) is well known to cause mitochondrial dysfunction in liver cells and liver damage. It is the leading cause of liver failure in the US and European countries.
- **Historical Association** [01:26] — The association between Tylenol intake during pregnancy and adverse neurologic outcomes in children first appeared in the medical literature in 2011.
- **Pregnancy and Liver Stress** [02:08] — Pregnancy places more stress on the liver, with enzymes increasing and women being more susceptible to metabolic issues. This baseline liver stress, combined with Tylenol's known liver stress, could lead to glutathione deficiency.
- **Political Issue** [03:18] — The speaker expresses confusion about why this has become a political issue, mentioning that Donald Trump and RFK have discussed the association. The speaker emphasizes that this is a health issue, not a political one.
- **Consensus Statement Paper** [04:26] — A 2021 consensus statement paper by obstetricians and investigators found a connection between intrauterine Tylenol exposure and ADHD in children, based on 29 observational studies.
- **Animal Model Studies** [05:09] — Animal model studies show that when mother mice are given acetaminophen, there are well-recognized developmental issues in the offspring. This provides mechanistic evidence for the potential impact on development.
- **N-acetylcysteine (NAC)** [08:02] — In hospitals, patients who drink alcohol and take large amounts of Tylenol are given intravenous N-acetylcysteine, which is the precursor amino acid to make glutathione, the body's most abundant antioxidant.
- **Harvard Study** [08:57] — A study from Harvard, published in BMC Environmental Health, found that children exposed to acetaminophen during pregnancy may be more likely to develop neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism and ADHD. The study analyzed results from 46 previous studies worldwide.
- **Call for Precautionary Action** [12:52] — A consensus statement paper, supported by 91 scientists, clinicians, and public health professionals, calls for precautionary action regarding paracetamol use during pregnancy. They recommend using the lowest effective dose for the shortest duration.
- **Endocrine Disruptor** [15:06] — Tylenol is an endocrine disruptor, and animal studies show potential reproductive effects in utero when exposed to this drug.
- **Associated Outcomes** [15:46] — Observational studies show positive associations between Tylenol exposure during pregnancy and a range of neurodevelopmental outcomes, including ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, language delays, decreased IQ, cerebral palsy, and oppositional defiant disorder.
- **Recommendations** [16:56] — The speaker recommends using Tylenol on a case-by-case basis, with low dose and short duration, and consulting with a physician or pharmacist. He also suggests considering natural alternatives for pain and fever.
- **Supporting Glutathione** [19:48] — The speaker recommends supporting glutathione levels with NAC and glycine, which are the two rate-limiting amino acids for making glutathione. He also mentions sulfur-containing foods like eggs, garlic, and onions.

### Conclusion

The video concludes that while Tylenol has a therapeutic role, its use during pregnancy should be approached with caution due to the potential association with neurodevelopmental issues. The speaker emphasizes that this is a health issue, not a political one, and recommends using the lowest effective dose for the shortest duration possible.

## Transcript

going to talk about all the controversy regarding Tylenol. I know we're hearing a lot about Tylenol and its association with use during pregnancy and adverse pregnancy outcomes, including ADHD, developmental issues, and autism. Now,
for some reason, this has become a political topic, which it shouldn't be. to focus on health. Now, for some reason, folks are making this political, because acetaminophen has been long
known to cause hepatxicity. What that means in layspeak is Tylenol, the the means in layspeak is Tylenol, the the the brand name for the drug acapen is well known to cause mitochondrial dysfunction within the hpatocytes or the
liver cells and cause liver damage. In fact, Tylenol is the leading reason why people have liver failure. Now, for some reason, it's become political because uh Trump and RFK have been discussing the the association with observational
studies finding that there is a consistent finding and correlation, this doesn't mean causation, a correlation between prenatal Tylenol use by mothers and adverse parent reported neurologic outcomes, most notably ADD and ADHD, but
also possibly autism. And so, we are going to talk about that today. uh we're going to stay out of politics. I just want you to understand uh this consensus statement paper. So this is not a new association.
literature that the there was an association between Tylenol intake during pregnancy and adverse neurologic outcomes in children appeared in the outcomes in children appeared in the medical literature back in 2011. Just to
remind you, it's 2025 when we film this live YouTube session, which as I uh always mention, if you're enjoying the content, hit that like button. Be sure this from. We have folks starting to come in and listen live. Uh again, if
you're enjoying the content, uh you know what to do. And also, I would love to Sometimes we have folks from New Zealand, folks from Australia, folks from the UK, and of course, uh all over the United States of America. So uh one
thing that I think is important that we understand and that is this when women are pregnant it turns out that there is more stress placed on their liver. That enzymes tend to increase during pregnancy. We also know that during
pregnancy women are more susceptible to metabolic induced dysipidemia and dislycemia. We know that when you are insulin resistant that can cause more strain or stress on the liver. Now, so you take this baseline hippatic or liver
stress and you overlay that or canvas on top of that the known liver stress induced by acetaminophen or Tylenol and that in some individuals might create a glutathione deficiency. There could be downstream consequence of that and say
that individual doesn't eat organic food, doesn't exercise, doesn't go in the sauna like many of you do. Well, then we can see a scenario where those mothers can create an interuterine environment that could increase the
propensity for abnormal neurologic development that could manifest in the forms of ADD, ADHD, and potentially autism down the road. Now, why is this
political issue just because uh Donald Trump and just because RFK, if you don't But please, if you're pregnant or know someone that's pregnant, don't encourage them to start slamming Tylenol. That that's not a good idea. This has been
long known. Again, Tylenol is the leading cause of liver failure in the US leading cause of liver failure in the US and European countries. Okay? So, if we're giving a compound for pain or fever that is well known to cause liver
stress in normal people and then you already have pre-existing liver stress idea. So, this is not a political conversation. I'm not sure even how this became a political issue. Now, if you're hearing me okay, let me know. Hit hit
that like button. Um, my streaming software did say I need to do an upgrade overlay this voice. It's really annoying. I want to make sure that's not here. So, again, just let me know if we're good. Uh, type that in. And if
you're enjoying the content, uh, of course, uh, let me know by hitting that like button. Uh, so here we go. Let's get into the science. We're not going to going to get into the weeds of the science and share with you what uh what
science and share with you what uh what we know in humans. Now, again, this data uh is is not new. This is going back to 2021. This is a consensus statement 2021. This is a consensus statement paper by obstitricians and investigators
used during pregnancy and adverse neurologic outcomes. And as you can see, this is graphically summarized here. There is a connection between There is a connection between intrauterine Tylenol exposure and ADHD
in children and this is reported again by 29 observational studies and there's been recent studies uh that have been reported uh finding similar findings. Now what we also know from animals and I know people are saying animal models
well we you know it's not really ethical to do interventional studies on humans to say give a pregnant woman Tylenol and see what happens to her child right that's not really ethical so when it comes to toxicological research we rely
upon animal model studies now in animal model studies when the the mother mice are given acidophen there is wellrecoognized developmental al issues in the offspring of those those uh um u mom mother mice. And so we
those uh um u mom mother mice. And so we we know mechanistically there is some uh issue here with regards to how Tylenol uh might impact developmental uh biology uh might impact developmental uh biology in mamleian uh children. And so this is
why we now have this consensus statement paper. And this was a call to action. This is, by the way, this was not published by politicians. This was not NPR or CNN or MSNBC. This was actual obstitricians, public health experts,
scientists, people with uh credited uh background in in medicine issuing caution. And I I would encourage you to download this free full text PDF paper if you want to and share this with your friends and family. Please share this
Instagrammers that are out there slamming Tylenol when they're pregnant because they're trying to defy their their people that they disagree with politically. That's not really a good idea because as you will see from uh
this image right here, as I mentioned, it's it's really quite simple when you granular specifics about how acetaminophen is metabolized and its secondary byproducts, how those deplete glutathione and how that could become
problematic, but let's keep it really simple, right? When you're pregnant, there is more stress placed on your liver. outside of alcohol. And this possibly is one of the reasons why it's not advised that pregnant women drink
alcohol as well. In addition to the wellrecoognized complications of acid aldahhide and the alcohol metabolites and how those affect uh developmental uh functioning in children, but the same thing is true when it comes to Tylenol.
Tylenol uh is well known to be a hypatic stressor. So you already have an organ whole body is helping to build a human being and then you you could someone's
cup could be full when it comes to the balance of oxidative versus free radical uh and and uh glutathione uh ratios here. We think about you know the oxidation reduction balance within the whole body and specifically within the
tissues of the liver uh and beyond. So Tylenol is well known to deplete glutathione. your body's most abundant and important intracellular antioxidant and phase 2 detoxification molecule. This is why, by the way, friends, when
you're in the hospital, heaven forbid, you drink alcohol and take large amounts of Tylenol, guess what happens? The emergency room physicians and associated healthcare practitioners would will give you intravenous nacetylcysteine, which
is the precursor amino acid to make the glutathione tripeptide. And so this is uh another important thing to consider you know just when we're talking about you know just when we're talking about this you know uh detoxification and you
know excreting heavy metals and minimizing exposure to persist organic pollutants if you're wanting to have a child. Uh all these things are very child. Uh all these things are very pertinent and important. Okay. So let's
again if you if you would like uh I think this is really uh fascinating think this is really uh fascinating stuff. You know, we have women on TikTok slamming Tylenol when research clearly shows that and this is from Harvard,
right? Harvard obviously uh has a political bias and even Harvard uh researchers are highlighting, you know, the connection between acid acetaminophen or Tylenol use during pregnancy and how it might increase the
pregnancy and how it might increase the risk of developing autism and ADHD in children. So, I'll just read this to you. They go on to say when children are exposed to acetaminophen also known by the brand name as Tylenol or paracetamol
paracetamol uh during pregnancy they may be more likely to develop neurodedevelopmental disorders such as autism and ADHD according to a new study. This study which was published on August 14th in the BMC environmental
health uh actually was an individual from the dean of Harvard public health uh was was a senior author. The study was led by uh other folks at Mount Sinai
uh school of medicine. The researchers analyzed results from 46 and what I'm going to do is I'm just going to make this uh bigger here. Uh, and I'm what I'm going to do is I'm going to leave uh this on the screen.
that we're talking about. I'm going to open this window up so you can see so I'm not looking down so much. Okay. The researchers analyzed results from 46 previous studies worldwide that investigated the potential link between
subsequent neurodedevelopment disorders in children. The researchers used the methodology, a gold standard network for synthesizing and evaluating environmental health data, which enabled them to conduct a rigorous comprehensive
analysis that supported evidence of an association between acetaminophen exposure during pregnancy and increase incidence of neurodedevelopment disorders. The researchers noted that while steps should be taken to limit
acetime use, the drug is important for treating pain and fever during pregnancy which are important complications that we shouldn't minimize. Right? So this is we shouldn't minimize. Right? So this is where context and gray really matters.
Obviously there is a therapeutic role for Tylenol. Is there better more complications and liver or hpatotoxicity? Of course. But we should
look at is the juice worth the squeeze? If someone is pregnant and there is a potential association between prenatal exposure to Tylenol because it's been exposure to Tylenol because it's been known to cross into the fetal brain via
blood and could cause glutathone uh issues within the brain and so forth. You know, could women opt for something more natural? And I think this is where people are steering and what the experts are really saying, right? Obviously a
fever and severe pain is bad for the fetus. But if we also know that the remedy is Tylenol and that in and of itself has well-known downsides, let's This is why we should be having a conversation. This has nothing to do
political issue? I I I really don't know. So they go on to say that that high fever can raise the risk of neural tube defects and preterm birth. Right? That's well known. So we recommended we recommend judicis judicious
recommend judicis judicious acetaminophen use lowest effective dose shortest duration under medical guidance tailored to the individual's risk benefit assessments rather than a broad limitation. They said context folks
context really matters. Isn't that the theme over the last 5 years? Context theme over the last 5 years? Context really really matters. Okay. So they they go on to say that there are um conflicts of interest in the research
from drug companies and so on and so forth. So so that's kind of interesting. So that was from Harvard. Now let's get into uh another review here. Uh this was a review that is it's actually highlighted on the screen here. It's
called paracetamol during pregnancy. A call for precautionary action. Okay, paracetamol is the the the more jargonistic uh characterization of acetaminophen or Tylenol. So, we're talking about the
understand here. Now, this was a consensus statement paper that was uh supported by 91 scientists, clinicians, and public health professionals across the globe. No politicians, right? These are
scientists saying that there are known and they talk about going to go through some of these not all of them of course we don't have time the image here and we're going to talk about this momentarily. So again they
find based upon their extensive review that was supported by 91 clinicians and scientists with expertise in the field of hpatotoxicity and developmental biology. They find that there is associations between acetaminophen
exposure during uterine development and complications with regards to reproduction and neurobbehavioral uh outcomes from something that we should probably pay attention to. Again, 91
uh scientists and experts. And they go on to say that we should be investigating this more cautiously and women should consult with their physician or pharmacist about
whether or not they should uh cons use Tylenol during pregnancy. and women should minimize the risk by using the lowest effective amount of Tylenol for the shortest duration as possible. And they also go on to say this should be
studied more extensively because we do have observational studies and we have uh evidence from animal model studies as animal model studies showing that prenatal Tylenol exposure is linked with
reproductive and neurological development issues in animals. Okay, it turns out that Tylenol is an endocrine disruptor. All right, this is right from the horse's mouth. This is not me making this up. And uh so that's really
interesting that there's potential reproductive effects in uterero when animals are exposed to this uh as well. So again, I'm not trying to be fear-mongering. I'm not saying you should never ever use Tylenol under any
circumstance whatsoever. As I mentioned, there's a lot of context, a lot of gray area. And this consensus statement paper of 91 clinicians and researchers and investigators is calling, you know, sort of a it's a call to action to suggest we
should be a little bit more diligent and cautious with regards to exposure to Tylenol because observational studies do show uh in fact that um there is
positive associations with Tylenol exposure during pregnancy and a range of clinically assessed and parent reported neurodedevelopmental outcomes neurodedevelopmental outcomes particularly ADHD they say along with
autism spectrum disorder language delays decreased IQ cerebral pausy and oppositional defiant disorder I'm going through that right now I have a teenager uh decreased executive function and conduct disorders okay and they they do
highlight several studies that I'm I'm sure you've heard about there was a 2020 perspective cohort study in Canada where there was similar findings and observations there was a 2019 observational study uh and beyond. So I
think this is just something that we should be be able to talk about. Um and again it just makes sense on a on a high level, right? Pregnancy is stressful on the liver. Tylenol is stressful on the liver. When you pair the two together,
you might be inducing increased hpatic stress, which could lead to increased acetaminophen that could cause glutathione depletion, that could cause glutathione depletion, that could cause developmental delay and beyond. Okay, so
what do we do here? Um, grateful that you're here right now, hit that like button. Do you like these lives? I like to do these because we can have to like edit anything. We can just get these out quick. Um, and and that's
chat here. I'm going to pop you out. I want to say hi to uh our friends on the live session. We have Tank from Illinois. Illinois. We uh we have folks here uh from
Louisiana. We have Jimmy from New Zealand. We have Carrie from Toronto. Uh amazing Carrie. We have Sonnie from North Carolina. We have Rick from Miami, North Carolina. We have Rick from Miami, Florida. Uh folks really appreciate uh
Florida. Uh folks really appreciate uh yeah like share all of the things. Uh so what really irks me is these political activists taking Tylenol
while they're pregnant to make a statement. Come on. What are we doing? What are we doing? Like remember the adage out of an abundance of caution school. Right? There was all these things. out of an abundance of caution,
one face mask, but two face masks. And now we have women not practicing that abundance of caution. They're making political statements and slamming though they're not in pain or don't have a fever, right? There's no clinical
a fever, right? There's no clinical indication to take a a drug like Tylenol to sort of get how are you getting back at your political opponent? Like this what are we doing, guys and gals? like why did politics become so such a
central future of people's lives that were like doing these crazy things? I stay away from politics. Uh it it's really wild to me. I I feel like I I never do anything to harm the development of my child to make a
statement. I mean left, right, center, libertarian, what no like this is health doesn't need to be political guys and gals, right? this these are totally separate topics or at least they should be and it just it gets me a little fired
up when we we politicize uh these things. So, um I think it's the media to blame. I'm I'm not really sure here. But, uh again, this is a great paper. fence about this, like I'm confused. I don't know what to believe. The
download this paper. It's free. You can find it on Google. Just download it Share this video with a friend. and I'll put in the link in the description below after we uh are done filming and you should be good to go. Um, so there's
that. There's that. I do it. This is actually a good time to remind you about NAC. This is not necessarily a commercial, but I do want to remind you if you ever take Tylenol, pregnant or not, you do want to support
and glycine. These are the two rate limiting amino acids that help your body, your liver specifically make glutathione. This has been a popular product by health-seeking people just like you. If you want to support
glutathione levels naturally with amino acids, this is a great tool you can save over at myioscience.com. I'll put links in the description below. Okay, now let's get to your questions. Uh, any questions? Tank says, "Yeah, humans can
be ridiculous." Yeah, please don't harm your children to make statements. you're conservative, liberal, don't don't put your children in harm's way to to sort of make viral videos. That is so stupid. Uh Zachary says, "Good evening
from Virginia." Okay, we have Cheryl from New York. Okay, we have Cheryl from New York. Okay.
broken bone, these doctors these days will tell you to take Tylenol." Yeah, you're right. They do prescribe Tylenol often. Um, does it Okay, so there was a question about an acetylcysteine and methylation. Uh, great question. Does
NAC help with methylation? Uh, indirectly so because people with methylation inborn errors in methylation metabolism, 5 MTHFR, compt etc. uh will
have issues with uh glutathione. So yeah, indirectly. Okay. Would eating natural foods be a better remedy than taking pills? Uh, Juan, for what? For pain or for glutathione support?
Uh, yeah. For glutathione support, we think of sulfur. We think of eggs, garlic, onions, ginger, turmeric. So, if you want to support glutathione, those are great ways to do that. Um, sulfur containing foods, egg, eggs, garlic,
containing foods, egg, eggs, garlic, ginger, etc. Uh, can help. Okay. David says, "The last time I had Tylenol was in 2013." Yeah, good for you. I haven't had Tylenol for a very very very long time as well. Okay. Um,
you're not pregnant? Yeah, the risk is you can deplete glutathione and cause liver damage. So, you know, Tylenol should be used on a on a really uh case-byase basis. Uh, low dose, short duration. Okay. Um, Tom, Nina, Trilio
are from Heber, Arizona. My business partner has a uh cabin out there. I have not yet been to Hebrew, but I would like to. Okay. Um,
helpful for pain. Going in a cold plunge. Um, there's a lot of things we plunge. Um, there's a lot of things we can do. All right. Uh, folks, um, I you're enjoying the content, hit that like button if you haven't already. That
helps other people that want to find this content. Um this content. Um I appreciate um I appreciate um all of that. Okay, so uh yeah, so again,
to share with someone uh that is pregnant or just wants to know about it. Uh we have animal studies, we have human studies, we have observational studies. Uh, it's not to say that you should
never ever have Tylenol, but look, we you certainly shouldn't be slamming Tylenol on TikTok, you know? I mean, that's that's kind of the thing here. Uh, while you're pregnant, uh, to make statements. So, that's why I wanted to
hop on and kind of, uh, talk with you all about this. Uh, really appreciate you all being here. Um, Juan, do you do live streams weekly? Yes, we do them on Mondays. Uh, for sure. And uh I've been traveling a lot with uh you know we
opened up a dietary supplement manufacturing facility in Arizona. We uh as you know you know one of my businesses is uh myocience and so we um manufacturers and being like all these other companies that just outsource
and we want to teach you and help you all understand what goes into making supplements using the minimous lowest amounts of exipients making sure that we're actually using the high quality raw materials that we import from Europe
domestic ingredients. There's some B vitamins that we get from China, but for the most part we're uh using European and and Americanmade raw materials, a lot of things from Canada as well. And so uh I've been busy with that and more
to come on that. Um but but yeah that's that's where we are. So uh Kiss says bromelain and turmeric. Yeah these things are are great natural compounds uh again for help uh you you know uh helping heal pain helping with I I
should be cautious what I say here cuz u um FDA helping to support uh the body's um FDA helping to support uh the body's natural inflammatory response. Um so yeah that's what's going on. Uh baby aspirin no problem. So, so aspirin is
derived uh from a tree bark, the the willow, and so yeah, not not a problem uh there. Now, long-term highdose aspirin, it might cause uh gastric uh issues. So, there's that. But for the most part, aspirin is pretty safe. Um
being here. Hopefully enjoying the content. Hit that like button if you enjoyed this show. Be sure to share this with a friend and we will catch you next Monday. Awesome that you all tuned in and we'll uh catch up with you later.
and we'll uh catch up with you later. Bye now.