United States Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr claimed on October 9 that there may be a link between autism and circumcision. However, experts say his claims are not based on rigorous and robust research.

“There’s two studies that show children who are circumcised early have double the rate of autism, and it’s highly likely because they’re given Tylenol,” said Kennedy, who, like President Donald Trump, cited shaky research about the drug and autism when warning pregnant women against taking the acetaminophen.

Circumcision is the removal of penis foreskin, a typically elective procedure performed on infants largely for religious and cultural reasons.

We looked at the studies, one from 2013 and another from 2015.

Neither showed that circumcision causes autism. Neither had data on whether acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, was given to the patients in the studies.

The two papers found some association between circumcision and autism, but both had significant limitations, including small sample sizes.

Authors of both papers advised further research to confirm a relationship.

Decades of research show that acetaminophen is safe for infants and children when used as recommended and under a paediatrician’s guidance. No research shows that taking the drug as a child causes increased autism risk.

Acetaminophen is not universally recommended for circumcisions. Infant circumcision is typically performed with a local anaesthetic. Some hospital...

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