Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr is raising concerns after making some stunning claims on Thursday.
He shared details about how there might be a link between circumcision and autism due to the distribution of Tylenol to infants following the procedure.
‘There are two studies that indicate how kids that are circumcised early on have double the rate of autism, and it’s highly likely that because they were given Tylenol,’- he shared.
Kennedy failed to specify the research study to which he was referring, but a 2015 study out of Denmark shed light on 343k Gen Z boys, which proved that circumcised males were more likely to develop autism before the age of 10 compared to their non-circumcised peers.
The researchers hypothesized that the pain and stressful surgery early in life could increase the risk of neurodevelopmental, behavioral, and psychological problems later on in life.
However, some of the critics called this line of research flawed and mentioned that the study should have examined other painful conditions like urinary tract infections, which are so common in young individuals.
Another possible explanation for the link might be due to the fact that boys who undergo circumcision are more likely to interact with healthcare workers, leading to a higher detection rate of autism. A second, smaller study found that circumcised boys with autism showed major improvements in irritability, sensory issues, and repetitive behavior compared to those who were not.