Acetaminophen, more popularly known as paracetamol, could raise the risk of autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children exposed to the painkiller during pregnancy, a new study has claimed.

Paracetamol is the world's most popular painkiller drug, but its use in recent years has come under heavy scrutiny.

Led by researchers from Mount Sinai and Harvard's School of Public Health, more than 100,000 people from 46 previous studies were analysed. The scientists used the Navigation Guide Systematic Review methodology, a gold-standard framework for synthesising and evaluating environmental health data for the study.

The team collected detailed data on when paracetamol was taken, whether in the first, second or third trimester, or throughout the whole pregnancy, and linked it with mothers' medical records.

The study urged mothers-to-be to use paracetamol, a common over-the-counter medication, sparingly, as it could cause neurodevelopmental disorders.

"Our findings show that higher-quality studies are more likely to show a link between prenatal acetaminophen exposure and increased risks of autism and ADHD," the study, published earlier this month in BMC Environmental Health, highlighted.

Source:Ndtv