Trump and autism: People affected speak out

The Documentary Podcast

BBC

Society & Culture, Documentary, Personal Journals

4.3 • 2.6K Ratings

🗓️ 11 October 2025

⏱️ 23 minutes

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Summary

President Donald Trump recently addressed what he described as the “horrible crisis” in autism, and rapid rise in reported cases over the last two decades. Previously, he has suggested a link between some vaccines and autism, and in his latest remarks, he warned pregnant women to avoid taking the painkiller Tylenol, or Paracetamol as it is known in many countries. Scientists around the world have condemned his remarks. They say the rise in reported cases of autism is due to increased understanding and diagnoses, and that there is no evidence to show that autism is caused by painkillers or vaccines. We speak to autistic people and the parents of autistic children to discuss their reactions to President Trump’s comments.

Transcript

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0:00.0	BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts.
0:04.5	Hello, I'm Rahul Tandon. Welcome to the documentary from the BBC World Service. In BBC OS
0:20.2	conversations, we bring people together to share their
0:23.3	experiences. This time, we hear from people with autism. The meteoric rise in autism is among
0:31.0	the most alarming public health developments in history. There's never been anything like this.
0:36.6	Donald Trump speaking from the White House, pledging to confront what he called the horrible
0:42.7	crisis of autism, in which he said cases had jumped from one in 10,000 children to 1 in 31
0:50.2	in the space of around 18 years. He claimed these figures show that something is causing the condition.
0:58.6	Previously, the president has suggested a link between some vaccines and autism.
1:04.1	And in this announcement, he pointed the finger at a commonly used painkiller,
1:09.8	paracetamol, as it's known here in the UK, or Tylenol.
1:14.1	Fight like hell not to take it. There may be a point where you have to and that you'll,
1:19.8	you have to work out with yourself, so don't take Tylenol.
1:23.2	His comments have been widely disputed by scientists and researchers around the world who study the condition.
1:30.1	They say the rise in reported cases of autism is due to increased understanding and diagnosis
1:36.4	but does not reflect any change in its prevalence.
1:40.8	They also reject the suggestion that autism is caused by painkillers or vaccines.
1:46.9	In our conversations, we'll hear from autistic people and parents of autistic children
1:52.7	as they react to what's being said by the politicians.
2:00.0	Sue Nelson is an award-winning science journalist and broadcaster here at the BBC.
2:05.4	She was diagnosed with autism at the age of 60.
2:09.0	Elena Carroll lives in Canada and was diagnosed at 25.
	...

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