Women who take paracetamol during pregnancy are more likely to have a child with ADHD, new research suggests
Using paracetamol during pregnancy may raise the risk of children developing ADHD, warn researchers.
Around half of women take over-the-counter painkillers during pregnancy, usually for headaches.
Researchers found that taking paracetamol (know as acetaminophen in the U.S. and the main ingredient in Tylenol) increased the risk of hyperactivity disorders by up to a third.
The risk was higher in mothers taking the painkillers for long periods while pregnant.
The international team of researchers behind a new study warn that widespread use mean the results are important but need to be confirmed by further investigations.
Paracetamol, known as acetaminophen in some countries, may act as a hormone disruptor in the womb, interfering with normal brain development.
NHS advice to pregnant women needing short-term pain relief is to take paracetamol at the lowest dose for the shortest period of time.
NHS Choices states: ‘There is no clear evidence that it has any harmful effects on the unborn baby.’
But the new study suggests taking the over-the-counter pills in pregnancy could be linked to ADHD, which stands for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
ADHD is the term given to a collection of behavioural problems linked to poor attention span including impulsiveness, restlessness and hyperactivity.
An estimated 400,000 British children have ADHD, with many prescribed drugs to try and improve their concentration at school.
The new study looked at data on more than 64,000 children and mothers in Denmark between 1996 and 2002, while parents reported behavioural problems on a questionnaire.
More than half the mothers reported using paracetamol while pregnant.
Its use was linked with a 37 per cent higher risk of hyperkinetic disorders - a severe form of ADHD.
Children of women using the painkiller were 29 per cent more at risk of eventually taking drugs to control ADHD, and 13 per cent more likely to have ADHD-like behaviours at the age of seven.
There were higher risks for the children of women who used the drug for six months or more while pregnant and higher amounts.
Taking paracetamol during pregnancy could increase the risk of ADHD by up to a third
The risk of hyperkinetic disorders almost doubled and the risk for receiving ADHD drugs rose 50 per cent, says a report in JAMA Pediatrics.
Dr Zeyan Liew of the University of California, Los Angeles, who led the team, said: ‘Some recent studies have suggested that acetaminophen has effects on sex and other hormones, which in turn can affect neurodevelopment and cause behavioural dysfunction.
‘Because the exposure and outcomes are frequent, these results are of public health relevance but further investigations are needed.’
About half of women take over-the-counter painkillers while they are pregnant
Previous research has suggested painkillers including paracetamol in pregnancy may harm development of the sex organs in unborn boys.
A study found prolonged use of painkillers - two weeks or more - may contribute to an increased risk in boys born with undescended testicles.
Dr Kate Langley, Developmental and Health Psychology, Cardiff University, and co-author of an editorial on the latest research, said: ‘This is an interesting but preliminary study which requires further investigation to see if there really is a causal link between taking paracetamol during pregnancy and ADHD in childhood.
‘These findings should therefore be taken with caution and should not change practice.
‘There are many reasons why women take paracetamol during pregnancy and it is possible that it is one of those factors, rather than the taking of paracetamol itself, which leads to a higher risk of childhood ADHD.
‘It may be important to take medications such as paracetamol during pregnancy and pregnant women should continue to follow advice from their own healthcare professionals.’
Professor Jim Stevenson, Emeritus Professor of Developmental Psychopathology at the University of Southampton said: ‘The study on a large sample of Danish mothers was carefully conducted and analysed. However, as the authors recognise, and the accompanying editorial makes plain, an association in such an observational study cannot establish a causal link.
‘The study should be used as basis for further experimental research not least because exposure to paracetamol during pregnancy is so common.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2566835/Taking-paracetamol-pregnancy-raise-risk-child-developing-ADHD.html#ixzz2uNWMvWjV
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