Acetaminophen use during pregnancy tied to ADHD, behavioral problems in children

[bananas]

Source: Fox News

Children born to women who used the painkiller acetaminophen during pregnancy may have an increased risk of developing behavioral problems like attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to new research.

In a new study published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics, researchers analyzed data collected from 64,322 mothers and children enrolled in the Danish National Birth Cohort from 1996 to 2002. At each trimester of pregnancy, mothers were asked if they had used any acetaminophen in the past three months.

“We (were) worried that the (acetaminophen) was influencing the brain during fetal development time,” study author Dr. Beate Ritz, professor and chair of the epidemiology department at the Fielding School of Public Health at the University of California, Los Angeles told FoxNews.com.

<snip>

Overall, maternal use of acetaminophen was associated with a 20 percent to almost two-fold increased risk of behavioral problems, including attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and hyperkinetic disorders (HKD) among children at age 7. The strongest effect was seen in women who took the painkillers during all three trimesters, though women who reported use for a minimum of one week still had an increased risk. More frequent use was tied to a higher risk of a hospital diagnosis of HKD or ADHD-like behaviors among children.

More than 50 percent of the women reported use of acetaminophen.

<snip>

"We're not saying not to take acetaminophen at all during pregnancy, but this study is suggesting we need to be judicious and smart about it. If you're taking it over and over for weeks, maybe there is something you can do instead," Chapa told FoxNews.com in an email.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2014/02/24/acetaminophen-use-during-pregnancy-tied-to-adhd-behavioral-problems-in-children/

[bananas]

1. Tylenol use during pregnancy linked to ADHD in kids, study finds

http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-tylenol-pregnancy-adhd-risk-20140224,0,2353473.story

Tylenol use during pregnancy linked to ADHD in kids, study finds
By Melissa Healy
February 24, 2014, 1:44 p.m.

Facing a world full of potential dangers for the babies they carry, pregnant women hear regularly that acetaminophen can be trusted to reduce fevers and relieve aches and pains without causing harm to a developing fetus. But a new study reports that the children of women who took the drug during pregnancy were about 40% more likely to be diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder than children of mothers who took none.

Acetaminophen is the active ingredient in Tylenol and Panadol and is also a component of Excedrin, among other common pain relievers.

The probability of a child developing ADHD symptoms severe enough to require medication increased the most — by 63% — when his or her mother took acetaminophen during the last two trimesters of pregnancy, researchers found. It also rose by about 28% when acetaminophen was used in the third trimester alone. The added risk was smallest — about 9% — when a pregnant woman reported taking the drug only during her first trimester of pregnancy.

The latest study, published Monday by the journal JAMA Pediatrics, does not establish that prenatal exposure to acetaminophen caused the observed increase in diagnosed hyperactivity disorders, prescriptions for ADHD medications, or emotional problems in children reported by parents. But the research was designed to avoid many of the pitfalls of studies that find an association between an environmental exposure and the appearance of a specific outcome many years later.

<snip>

[bananas]

2. UCLA News Release

http://newsroom.ucla.edu/portal/ucla/use-of-acetaminophen-during-pregnancy-250121.aspx

Use of acetaminophen during pregnancy linked to ADHD in children, UCLA researchers say
By Mark Wheeler February 24, 2014

Acetaminophen, found in over-the-counter products such as Excedrin and Tylenol, provides many people with relief from headaches and sore muscles. When used appropriately, it is considered mostly harmless. Over recent decades, the drug, which has been marketed since the 1950s, has become the medication most commonly used by pregnant women for fevers and pain.

Now, a long-term study by UCLA, in collaboration with the University of Aarhus in Denmark, has raised concerns about the use of acetaminophen during pregnancy.

In a report in the current online edition of JAMA Pediatrics, researchers from the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health show that taking acetaminophen during pregnancy is associated with a higher risk in children of attention-deficity/hyperactivity disorder and hyperkinetic disorder. The data raises the question of whether the drug should be considered safe for use by pregnant women.

<snip>

"The causes of ADHD and hyperkinetic disorder are not well understood, but both environmental and genetic factors clearly contribute," said Dr. Beate Ritz, professor and chair of the department of epidemiology at the Fielding School and one of the senior authors of the paper. "We know there has been a rapid increase in childhood neurodevelopmental disorders, including ADHD, over the past decades, and it's likely that the rise is not solely attributable to better diagnoses or parental awareness. It's likely there are environmental components as well."

"That gave us the motivation to search for environmental causes that are avoidable," said the University of Aarhus' Dr. Jørn Olsen, another senior author and former chair of the UCLA Fielding School's epidemiology department. "Part of the neuropathology may already be present at birth, making exposures during pregnancy and/or infancy of particular interest. Because acetaminophen is the most commonly used medication for pain and fever during pregnancy, it was something we thought we should look at."

<snip>

[merrily]

3. I wonder who or what motivated this study.

[bananas]

4. even when researchers considered mothers' mental health histories and additional factors – including

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/02/24/acetaminophen-pregnancy-adhd/5782763/

<snip>

Children whose mothers took acetaminophen were:

•13% more likely to show ADHD-like behaviors, such as hyperactivity and conduct problems.

•37% more likely to be diagnosed with hyperkinetic disorder, which is the equivalent of "high end" ADHD, Ritz says.

•29% more likely to get ADHD medications.

The associations held up even when researchers considered mothers' mental health histories and additional factors – including fevers, infections and inflammation — that might have led women to take acetaminophen in the first place. The associations grew stronger the more weeks mothers reported taking acetaminophen, Ritz says. She says one flaw of the study is that researchers don't know how many pills women took.

Researchers cannot rule out that some unreported condition more common among women who took a lot of acetaminophen – for example, a genetic tendency to be highly sensitive to pain – might be the real link to ADHD, she says.

<snip>

[JackInGreen]

5. Can you please post a reference other than

faux news? I will not give their website any presence.

[bananas]

6. I already posted several, this is on every major news site.

Just google news for acetaminophen and adhd:

https://www.google.com/#newwindow=1&q=acetaminophen+adhd&tbm=nws

About 2,720 results (0.23 seconds)

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[Deep13]

7. Well, that's not so good. nt

[BlueMTexpat]

8. In my child-bearing years, I was

frequently subject to practically debilitating migraine headaches. Aspirin was the only medication that would work at all for me, much better even than prescription pain-killers. Back in those long-ago days of yore (the 60s), I gave birth to two children, both boys, both perfectly healthy and neither subject to ADHD. Thank all the powers that be!

I have never been a smoker, but I do enjoy wine - at most, one glass with dinner - and - VERY occasionally - a margarita.

In fact, I'd never even heard of ADHD when my children were growing up. I heard for years about how bad aspirin was but with acetaminophen, etc. never relieving my pain, I continued to use aspirin. Now that I am a "senior," I understand that researchers have concluded that judicious daily use of aspirin (most recommend "children's" aspirin) improves my odds of not suffering from heart disease or a stroke, in addition to not exacerbating arthritic conditions. I just know that, for me, it still keeps headaches at bay.

Two great rules from the Oracle at Delphi: "Know thyself" and "Nothing to excess." They do work.

[JDPriestly]

10. Yes. Excellent advice. Nothing to excess and Know thyself.

[BlueMTexpat]

16. They mostly help me not to overreact

to every study about anything (food, medication, activity, etc.) that comes out. Yes, inform oneself by all means. If one already has health risks/conditions, to the extent humanly possible, don't do or ingest things that will exacerbate them. When pregnant, try to stay as healthy as possible, exercise moderately (walking is great), avoid stressful situations, get enough sleep, eat wholesome food and take as little medication as possible. That's all common sense and, for most, common sense should suffice. Of course, real life does tend to interfere with the ideal.

One of my DILs literally stressed herself out about every known possible outcome (always the worst case scenario), took every possible vitamin recommended, would listen only to her OB-GYN, friends and friendly co-workers, dismissing anything I or her own mother had to say if the "experts" had said something different - because we obviously only knew things from the Dark Ages. Another DIL took care of herself, did not fret about every single thing and simply enjoyed her pregnancy. Thankfully, both had healthy, beautiful babies and, of course, this grandmom adores them and their mothers. Neither child seems to have blatant ADHD issues - again thankfully. But one child is now often anxious and worried while the other is much calmer and laid-back, although still motivated to do well. Guess which one came from which pregnancy ....

I realize that some people - generally those who are already the most vulnerable - really cannot control the circumstances they are prisoners of, which is a whole other situation and, in too many cases, a tragic one.

[Enthusiast]

9. Never thought I would recommend something from Fox "News".

[truthisfreedom]

11. I've never understood why Tylenol seems to be the go-to pain med

Recommended by doctors. I'm an Advil guy.

[GreenPartyVoter]

12. In terms of pregnancy, taking Ibuprofen can cause problems, so Tylenol has been recommended instead.

[GreenPartyVoter]

13. Oh dear. Second son has ADHD and Oppositional Defiance. I remember taking so much

Tylenol for headaches throughout the pregnancy that I joked with the doctor that it was a miracle he even had a liver.

On the other hand, I believe he gets his tendency toward his behavioral and emotional issues from me, and I got them from my Dad. So with a clear generational link, I guess I'm not worried that my taking pain relievers caused this. But I do wonder if it could have made it worse than it otherwise would have been.

[Gormy Cuss]

15. You can't blame yourself if the Tylenol did influence his ADHD/ODD

It's not as if you took the pills knowing that there was such a possibility, nor was it the case that your doctor knew this.
IOW, good that you're not worrying about it now. If you were planning to have another child, that would be the time to worry.

[GreenPartyVoter]

17. Thank you! :^) (The thought of having another child in my 40s though, I am exhausted just thinking

about it! I would rather wait several years and enjoy being a Nana instead. LOL)

[Gormy Cuss]

14. This study is a good example of why correlations matter.

From the language used, it seems that a strong correlation was found but not strong enough to call it causal.
In this case, the correlation is strong enough to suggest moderating acetaminophen use during pregnancy because if as suspected the drug does play a role in HKD/ADHD development, getting the message out now is important from a preventative health perspective. Further studies are needed to show a causal association. If those studies dispute this finding and/or identify a different causal agent in the future pregnant women can go back to using acetaminophen.