The Dictatorship
A glimpse at Trump’s false claims around pregnancy, Tylenol and autism
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump announced Monday that his administration is strongly recommending that women limit Tylenol use during pregnancy unless medically necessary. “I want to say it like it is, don’t take Tylenol,” he said, encouraging women to “just fight like hell not to take it.” But his comments came under intense criticism from medical experts and researchers — because there’s no proof tying the painkiller to autism. He also made a number of dubious claims about autism, vaccines and treatments.
Here’s a look at the facts.
Are autism rates increasing?
TRUMP: “Since 2000, autism rates have surged by much more than 400%.” He said the rate used to be 1 in 20,000, then 1 in 10,000 and now is 1 in 31, saying “there’s something artificial” to explain it.
THE FACTS: It’s true that autism rates have ballooned but Trump’s numbers are off. The 1 in 10,000 figure dates back to the 1990s. In 2000, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention put the rate at 1 in 150. In 2018, it was 1 in 44. The latest count, based on 2022 data, is 1 in 31.
Scientists say the explanation is that decades ago diagnosis was rare, given only to kids with severe problems. Diagnosis of “autism spectrum disorder” began jumping as scientists learned the developmental disorder encompasses a wide range of traits and symptoms. And as educational and other services grew, more parents began seeking diagnoses to help their kids.
Does maternal Tylenol use increase the baby’s chances of autism?
TRUMP: “Tylenol during pregnancy can be associated with a very increased risk of autism.”
THE FACTS: Studies don’t prove that. Even Trump’s Food and Drug Administration didn’t go nearly that far in a letter to doctors this week that instead they “should consider minimizing” acetaminophen’s use in pregnancy.
It’s clear that genetics are the biggest risk factor. Other risks include the age of a child’s father, preterm birth and whether the mother had health problems during pregnancy such as fevers, infections or diabetes.
Some studies have raised the possibility of a link between autism risk and using acetaminophen during pregnancy — but more haven’t found a connection.
These are observational studies that compare health records about prenatal acetaminophen and autism traits in children. The big problem: Those kinds of studies can’t tell if the painkiller really made any difference – or if instead it was the fever or other health problem that prompted the need for the pill.
The Coalition of Autism Scientists notes that use of acetaminophen – or paracetamol as it’s known outside the U.S. — during pregnancy hasn’t increased in recent decades like autism rates have.
The risks of not treating a fever
TRUMP: “There’s no downside in not taking it,” he said in urging women to not take Tylenol during pregnancy.
THE FACTS: There are huge downsides to avoiding Tylenol when a pregnant woman really needs it, according to the nation’s leading pregnancy doctors. Untreated fevers, for example, can increase the risk of birth defects, premature birth and miscarriages, according to the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine.
Both the society and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists say the painkiller is a safe and needed option during pregnancy. The over-the-counter drug’s label already tells pregnant women to consult their doctor about its use.
“The conditions people use acetaminophen to treat during pregnancy are far more dangerous than any theoretical risks,” ACOG said.
Autism has been gaining in visibility in Cuba
TRUMP: ““I hear Cuba doesn’t have it because it’s very expensive and they don’t have the money to have it, or they don’t want to spend the money to have it. They don’t have Tylenol. And I hear they have essentially no autism.”
THE FACTS: In Cuba, as in many regions around the world, autism has begun to gain visibility in recent years. Awareness campaigns have been launched on state television to promote the inclusion of autistic people. And according to Ministry of Education psychologist Lisbet Rizo Suárez, Cuba has nine educational institutions to serve autistic children.
As for paracetamol, as Tylenol is known outside of the U.S., it is widely used in Cuba and doctors prescribe it without restrictions.
Autism is found in Amish communities
TRUMP, saying certain groups that don’t take vaccines or pills have no autism, “the Amish, is an example. They have essentially no autism.”
THE FACTS: This is false. While there is limited scientific data around autism in the Amish community, studies have found that there are cases. A 2010 paper from the International Society for Autism Research found autism was less prevalent in Amish communities than the U.S. overall, but it called for further study to determine how “cultural norms and customs” played a role in the numbers.
Braxton Mitchell, an epidemiologist at the University of Maryland School of Medicine who has worked with the Amish community for 30 years, said his group has confirmed there is autism in the community. He said Tylenol is used by many Amish and some choose to vaccinate their children, others do not.
But he said it is a challenge to gather reliable data on the subject because autism and other related conditions require clinical assessments and expert diagnosis, which Amish families may not seek out.
Trump overstates childhood vaccinations
TRUMP: “You have a little child, a little fragile child, and you get a vat of 80 different vaccines, I guess, 80 different blends.”
THE FACTS: The current childhood vaccination schedule recommends routine protection against 18 diseases. They’re not all given to “a little child” but at different ages.
How many shots that adds up to between birth and age 18 can vary. The number is closer to three dozen if you don’t count once-a-year flu shots or an annual COVID-19 vaccine.
Vaccines have been proven to protect children from once common deadly diseases. There is no evidence that the schedule is harmful.
As for autism, scientists and leading advocacy groups for people with autism agree there’s no vaccine link to the disorder.
“Studies have repeatedly found no credible link between life-saving childhood vaccines and autism. This research, in many countries, involving thousands of individuals, has spanned multiple decades. Any effort to misrepresent sound, strong science poses a threat to the health of children,” said Dr. Susan Kressly of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Why infants should get a hepatitis B vaccine
TRUMP: “Hepatitis B is sexually transmitted. There’s no reason to give a baby that’s almost just born Hepatitis B. So I would say wait till the baby is 12 years old and formed.”
THE FACTS: Hepatitis B can cause serious liver damage and it’s true that in adults, the virus is spread through sex or sharing needles during injection-drug use.
But for babies, it’s a different story. If a pregnant woman carries the virus, she can pass it to her baby during delivery. While mothers-to-be are supposed to be tested, not all are. The virus also can live on surfaces for more than seven days at room temperature, meaning unvaccinated infants living with anyone with a chronic infection can be at risk.
Since 2005, U.S. health officials have recommended giving the first dose of a hepatitis B vaccine within 24 hours of birth for most infants. As a result, infant infections have dropped sharply.
The issue with up MMR vaccines
TRUMP: The MMR, I think, should be taken separately. This is based on what I feel, the, mumps, measles and and the three should be taken separately. And it seems to be that when you mix them, there could be a problem. So there’s no downside in taking them separately. In fact, they think it’s better.”
THE FACTS: Trump is referring to the vaccine that combines protection against measles, mumps and rubella. And his suggestion of separating that one combination shot into three isn’t possible. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, there are no single-antigen versions – no measles-only, mumps-only, rubella-only shots – available.
Early concern about a possible link between vaccines and autism arose from falsified information about the MMR vaccine in a 1998 paper that was later retracted by the medical journal that published it.
Would it be safer for parents to break up vaccines for infants?
TRUMP: On spacing out vaccines for infants, “Break up your visits to the doctors. Break them up.”
THE FACTS: That message infuriates pediatricians.
“Spacing out or delaying vaccines means children will not have immunity against these diseases at times when they are most at risk,” said Kressly, the president of the AAP.
It’s also hard for parents to make repeat visits for vaccinations outside of the normal well-baby schedule.
Trump touts an unproven treatment for autism
TRUMP, discussing a possible new treatment: “And the baby can get better, and in some cases may be substantially better.”
THE FACTS: That’s not proven, at least not yet. Trump was referring to a folic acid metabolite called leucovorin – and it’s far from clear if it’s really an effective treatment and if so, for which people.
Low levels of folate, a form of vitamin B, are linked to certain birth defects so women already are told to take folic acid before conception and during pregnancy.
A small percentage of people with autism also appear to have low levels of folate in their brains, possibly because of antibodies that block it. The Autism Science Foundation cautions that their non-autistic relatives also often have those antibodies, suggesting that’s not a cause of autism.
But the theory is that giving folate to that subset of autistic people might improve certain symptoms. Only a few very small clinical trials have been done with the drug. So the foundation and other autism experts say large, rigorous studies are needed before it can be recommended as a treatment.
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Associated Press journalists Andrea Rodriguez in Havana and Barbara Whitaker in New York contributed reporting. ___
The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Find AP Fact Checks here: https://apnews.com/APFactCheck.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran again launched drone and missile attacks targeting Bahrainand Kuwaiton Sunday following new U.S. airstrikes against the Islamic Republic, and threatened a “complete halt” in negotiations to end the warif Washington continues its attacks.
Efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuzwithout Iran’s oversight has sparked days of crossfire. A multinational maritime body overseen by the U.S. Navy said Saturday it would expand a route near Omanfor inbound and outbound traffic.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday reiterated the claim that Tehran must govern the strait to the Persian Gulfthat once carried a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas.
“Any attempt to establish new or separate arrangements from those currently being carried out by the Islamic Republic of Iran will only lead to further complications, delay the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and increase the level of tension,” Araghchi said.
The strait has long been considered an international waterway despite its location in Iran and Oman’s territorial waters. In recent days, Iran has twice attacked vessels going through a route near the Omani side.
A Pakistani official involved in the technical talks between the U.S. and Iran told MS NOW Sunday that talks between the sides are on hold given the ongoing fighting between the two sides. The source, who did not want to be named to discuss the sensitive matter, said the U.S., Iran, Pakistan and Qatar all have representatives currently in Switzerland to restart discussions when instructed to do so.
But the Trump administration said nothing has been canceled and technical talks are on track for the coming days.
Talks include arrangements around the strait, the removal of a U.S. blockade on Iranian ports and sanctions on Iran, and the future of Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium. The two sides have 60 days from their signing of the memorandum of understanding earlier this month to work out details.
Continued conflict in Lebanon threatens the agreement, which says fighting must end on all fronts before certain issues can be discussed.
Strikes target Gulf states hosting US military
Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard claimed responsibility for the attacks in Bahrain and Kuwait.
Kuwait, which hosts a major U.S. military base, said air defenses intercepted Iranian drones and two missiles just after the U.S. strikes in Iran. There were no reports of injuries or damage.
Bahrain said the Iranian strikes damaged a residential building near the international airport and no one was killed. Bahrain is home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet. The damaged building was not near its headquarters.
Bahrain’s Foreign Ministry denounced what it called “a dangerous escalation that reveals that what Tehran is doing is not a passing act, nor an isolated incident, but rather a deliberate approach and a systematic pattern of repeated aggression.”
Later on Sunday, Qatar said a civilian had been killed, and another person was hurt, by shrapnel related to “military operations in the area” after a vessel didn’t return at its scheduled time on Saturday. It did not give details.
Trump accuses Iran of violating ceasefire
The U.S. military said it struck Iranian military “surveillance infrastructure, communication systems, air defense sites, drone storage facilities and minelayer capabilities” following an attack on a ship on Saturday. The Panamanian-flagged tanker Kiku carried crude oil for the state-run energy company of Qatar, another key mediator.
U.S. President Donald Trump on social media accused Iran of violating the deal and warned of a point where the U.S. may “be forced to militarily complete the job.”
“If that happens, the Islamic Republic of Iran will no longer exist!” Trump wrote.
The exchanges of fire began when an Iranian drone struck a merchant vesseloff Oman on Thursday and the U.S. military retaliated.
Ship traffic on the strait had increased over the past 72 hours, “despite the elevated threat environment,” the multinational maritime body overseen by the U.S. Navy said Sunday, adding that “U.S.-assisted commercial transits continued uninterrupted.”
It said 89 such transits had been made, below the historical average of 138 vessels a day.
Iran calls for new ‘conflict control unit’ in Lebanon
Last week, Israel and Lebanon signed a framework agreementto end the latest fighting between Israel and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group, which began two days after the Iran war started when Hezbollah fired at Israel. Israel has responded with an invasion of southern Lebanon and it has said it will not withdraw until Hezbollah is disarmed.
The agreement did not include Iran or Hezbollah, which has criticized itand rejected calls to disarm.
On Sunday, Iran’s foreign minister again said the U.S. must force Israel to halt attacks and withdraw. Israel occupies around 600 square kilometers (231 square miles) in southern Lebanon, which it says it needs as a security buffer.
Sporadic clashes have continued, and Hezbollah’s leader said Saturday that the group would continue fighting until Israel withdraws from Lebanon.
Key Iranian negotiator and parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf said Sunday that a meeting of a new “conflict control unit” formed among Iran, the United States and Lebanon should meet as soon as possible, Iran’s state broadcaster reported.
Two strikes hit southern Lebanon on Sunday morning — one in Taybeh town and the other in the Nabatiyeh area, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency. There was no immediate word on casualties.
Overnight, Hezbollah militants killed an Israeli soldier in Deir Siryan village in southern Lebanon, according to Israel’s military. Hezbollah did not comment.
Israel targets a village in Syria
Israel’s military targeted Abdin village in southern Syria’s Daraa province with artillery shelling Sunday evening, Syrian state media reported. There was no immediate report of casualties.
State news agency SANA earlier reported that residents had blocked the road into the village with stones to prevent Israeli forces from entering it again after they had entered and withdrawn.
Earlier Sunday, Israel’s military said it had killed several armed men in southern Syria but gave no details. There was no statement from Syrian officials.
Israel seized control of a U.N.-patrolled buffer zone in southern Syria in December 2024 following the ouster of former Syrian President Bashar Assad in an insurgent offensive. Israeli officials initially called the move temporary, but more recently they have said they plan to occupy the zone indefinitely.
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani has a message for political opponents using him as the new face of the Democratic Party: “Let them.”
Recent primary races in New York turned into a proxy war between progressives, including democratic socialists like Mamdani, and establishment Democratic politicians after candidates endorsed by Mamdani faced off against those endorsed by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul. After all three of Mamdani’s endorsements bore fruit, a national spotlight shone on the mayor as a growing influence in the Democratic Party.
Asked on ABC News’ “This Week” on Sunday how he felt about Republicans making him the “poster child” for the Democratic Party, Mamdani said, “Let them. We don’t have to ask ourselves what life looks like if a socialist wins. I won last November, and over the course of these last six months, what we’ve delivered for working people are the very things we were told were impossible.”
He touted recent campaign promises he delivered on, including freezing rents for nearly one million rent-stabilized apartments, expanding free child care and filling potholes across the city.
“I think we are seeing a hunger that is not just felt by New Yorkers, but frankly by Americans from coast to coast for a new politics, one that puts working people at the heart of it,” Mamdani told ABC.
Mamdani dismissed criticism from Republicans and Democrats alike. Jeffries, who represents parts of Brooklyn and Queens, said last week that he and the mayor “agree to strongly disagree about some of his endorsements, and he’s got work to do in terms of the conversations that he’s going to have with members of Congress moving forward.” Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut said, “The effort to nationalize New York is going to fail.”
Mamdani said he’s focused on the three congressional candidates he has already endorsed: Brad LanderDarializa Avila Chevalier and Claire Valdez. But he didn’t rule out future endorsements outside of New York.
“It’s not just New York City where working people are asking themselves ‘why can’t I afford my rent, why can’t I afford my groceries, why can’t I find enough money in my pocket for childcare no matter how hard I work?,’” Mamdani said.
When asked about a recent manifesto penned by a number of moderate House Democrats and Democratic candidates, promoting capitalism over socialism, Mamdani doubled down on his vision for the party.
“I’m not interested in writing a manifesto, or frankly, in reading one,” the mayor said. “I’m interested in delivering.”
Mamdani also criticized Democrats who continue to make antagonizing Trump the center of their politics rather than working people.
“You’ve got to have something that you are not just willing to stand up for, but that you’re also willing to explain how this is relevant to working people,” he said. “And I think this just comes back to the fact that I’m leading a city that’s the wealthiest city in the wealthiest country in the history of the world. I could end the sentence there and say that life is great for 8.5 million people. But it’s also a city where one in four are living in poverty. And for far too many Americans, those contradictions have become their day to day life.”
Erum Salam is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW, with a focus on how global events and foreign policy shape U.S. politics. She previously was a breaking news reporter for The Guardian.
Despite remaining undefeated in the initial round of the World Cupthe Iran national team is going home after failing to secure enough points to advance. But they do not leave quietly.
Iran’s tumultuous journey in the World Cup has been the subject of widespread attention amid the U.S. war with Iran, with the United States being one of three countries hosting matches. The Iranian team captain, Mehdi Taremi, blamed FIFA, saying, “It’s a disaster World Cup. A disaster.”
“I mean, FIFA, they have to solve every problem here but unfortunately they could not solve it since the beginning,” Taremi said at a press conference Friday after his team drew with Egypt, knocking Iran out of the tournament.
He pointed to the team’s biggest obstacle. “We don’t have our logistics people here. They don’t have a visa,” Taremi said, adding, “We always complain about these things but no one helps. No one.”
The Trump administration denied visas to key Iranian staff and severely restricted players’ travel. The team’s base camp was moved from Arizona to Tijuana, Mexico, where it was required to return immediately after each game.
“How is it possible we always have to travel from Tijuana? We love the people in Tijuana. We love Mexico,” the Iran team captain said, but added, “It’s not fair.”
Throughout the tournament, the Football Federation of Iran lamented the number of issues, threatening to lodge a formal complaint against FIFA. Head coach Amir Ghalenoei called his team the “most oppressed” in the tournament. A few days before Iran’s final match against Egypt in Seattle on Friday, the U.S. loosened travel restrictions to allow players to enter the United States two days before the game.
“The Iran team will still be required to leave the day the match ends,” the Department of Homeland Security said ahead of the match. “The overall security measures and protocol are the same. We remain committed to providing the safest tournament possible for players, staff, and fans alike.”
Still, Iran finished Group G in third place with three points earned after drawing in its matches against Belgium, New Zealandand Egypt. Under FIFA’s new 48-team format, the top eight of third-place teams move on to the next round, but Iran narrowly fell short.
The team initially seemed poised to advance when it was tied with the same amount of points as Algeria, which scored a goal in stoppage-time against Austria Saturday night. But moments later, Austria tied the game, guaranteeing Iran’s elimination.
Off the field, tensions with Iran heightened Friday when the U.S. struck Iran despite signing a memorandum of understanding meant to halt hostilities in order to finalize a peace deal.
Erum Salam is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW, with a focus on how global events and foreign policy shape U.S. politics. She previously was a breaking news reporter for The Guardian.
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