Fox news, CNN, Huffington Post, Time, CBS are reporting the news that is sweeping the nation about the dangers of a drug that all of us have probably had in our medicine cabinets and consumed at one time or another.  Acetaminophin, found in Tylenol and Excedrin, when taken by pregnant mothers, is showing a 37% increase of risk of their children developing ADD.   According to previous research, acetaminophen can disrupt the body’s endocrine, or hormone, system. Exposure to endocrine disruptors in a fetus may effect neurodevelopment and cause behavioral dysfunction.  The exact mechanism of disruption is unclear, but the correlation appears to be strong.

Acetaminophin has been recommended by the doctors in the past to pregnant woman to address fevers or illness as a safer alternative to other pain killers.  Currently the FDA has made no adjustments to Acetominophin’s risks for pregnant women.

Tylenol, namely, has also been under scrutiny in the past year for its failure to advise that in excess doses or in combination with alcohol, it can cause death. The FDA was warned of the potential of Tylenol with liver failure over 32 years ago but has just recently taken notice.  Annually, there have been on average 150 deaths; some affecting the very young as well as the old. 

Per the site WTOP.com, here are  Major Takeaways about Tylenol:

1. About 150 Americans die a year by accidentally taking too much acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, federal data from the CDC shows.
2. Acetaminophen has a narrow safety margin: the dose that helps is close to the dose that can cause serious harm, according to the FDA.
3. The FDA has long been aware of studies showing the risks of acetaminophen. So has the maker of Tylenol, McNeil Consumer Healthcare, a division of Johnson & Johnson
4. Over more than 30 years, the FDA has delayed or failed to adopt measures designed to reduce deaths and injuries from acetaminophen. The agency began a comprehensive review to set safety rules for acetaminophen in the 1970s, but still has not finished
5. McNeil, the maker of Tylenol, has taken steps to protect consumers. But over more than three decades, the company has repeatedly opposed safety warnings, dosage restrictions and other measures meant to safeguard users of the drug.

According to this report, the FDA has failed to present the risks when the risks were under suspicion decades ago.  It’s disheartening to learn that the drug administration that we as Americans put faith in, is not protecting our people. It’s up to us to spread words of concern.  If you do use Tylenol and know of others that would value this information please share.

Be well,

Lynn