Trump's unfounded claims heap new stress on household brand name Tylenol

President Donald Trump blasted Tylenol this week, promoting unproven links between the pain reliever and autism and pushing the well-established treatment into another national image crisis.

“Don’t take Tylenol,” Trump instructed pregnant women around a dozen times during a White House news conference. He also urged mothers not to give infants the drug, known by the generic name acetaminophen in the U.S. or paracetamol in other countries.

The attack on Tylenol by the U.S. president was unprecedented but not exactly new territory for one of the world’s most common pain relievers. Tylenol already has faced dozens of lawsuits regarding the autism claim, and it dealt with cyanide poisoning s in the 1980s that led to a product recall.

Some studies have raised the possibility that taking the over-the-counter painkiller in pregnancy might be associated with a risk of autism — but many others haven’t found a connection.

The attack from Trump could invite more litigation and lead customers to switch to alternatives. But the maker of Tylenol, Kenvue Inc., is refuting Trump’s challenge, and analysts think loyalty to a product that has been on the market since the 1950s may ultimately limit damage.

Acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, has long been one of the most popular pain relievers and fever reducers in the U.S., used by upwards of 100 million Americans annually.

Tylenol had been made by Johnson & Johnson for years before the health care giant spun its consumer products division into a separate company called Kenvue in 2023 because it was thought that the companies could function more efficiently if they were independent from each other. Aside from Tylenol, the consumer health company makes Band-Aids, Listerine and other household brand names.

Kenvue, which has already struggled this year with disappointing financial results and a CEO switch, has said it faces litigation in federal court over the autism claims. It noted in an annual filing earlier this year that many of those claims have been dismissed but are being appealed.

Citi Investment Research analyst Filippo Falorni wrote that he sees a limited risk of new lawsuits after the dismissal of the previous claims. But he thinks “there could be risk to Tylenol consumption given the negative headlines.”

Kenvue is fighting that. The company’s website about Tylenol notes that “credible, independent scientific data” shows no proven link between acetaminophen and autism.

It also links to statements from several medical associations discrediting any connection.

Ultimately, Morningstar analyst Keonhee Kim said he doesn’t expect a lasting sales impact on such an established brand.

“I think consumer loyalty and brand trust in the consumer health care space is usually stronger compared to some other, traditional (consumer products) categories,” he said.

Shares of Kenvue had shed about 20% of their value so far this year. The stock slipped as the week started with investors awaiting Trump’s news conference.

But shares rallied nearly 3% on Tuesday, as investors realized things could have been worse. Falorni said some had worried that Tylenol would be banned or that new data establishing a direct link between acetaminophen and autism would be released.

No new data was released Monday.

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AP Health Writer Matthew Perrone contributed to this report.

Extra Strength Tylenol is shown in Carmel, Ind., Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Extra Strength Tylenol is shown in Carmel, Ind., Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Extra Strength Tylenol is shown in Carmel, Ind., Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Extra Strength Tylenol is shown in Carmel, Ind., Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Extra Strength Tylenol is shown in Carmel, Ind., Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Extra Strength Tylenol is shown in Carmel, Ind., Tuesday, Sept. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

FILE - In this Dec. 12, 2007 file photo, Tylenol drugs are shown in the drug department at Costco in Mountain View, Calif. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File)

U.S. President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he’s been told “on good authority” that plans for executions in Iran have stopped, even as Tehran has signaled fast trials and executions ahead in its crackdown on protesters.

The U.S. president’s claims, which were made with few details, come as he’s told protesting Iranians in recent days that “help is on the way” and that his administration would “act accordingly” to respond to the Iranian government.

But Trump has not offered any details about how the U.S. might respond and it wasn’t clear if his comments Wednesday indicated he would hold off on action. Earlier Wednesday, Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, Iran’s judiciary chief, said the government must act quickly to punish more than 18,000 people who have been detained through rapid trials and executions.

The security force crackdown on the demonstrations has killed at least 2,586, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported. The death toll exceeds that of any other round of protest or unrest in Iran in decades and recalls the chaos surrounding the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Here is the latest:

Iran issued an order early Thursday to close its airspace, without explanation.

The order came amid heightened tensions over its bloody crackdown on protesters during nationwide protests and the possibility of American strikes in response.

The flight-tracking website FlightRadar24.com noted the order closed Iran’s airspace for a little more than two hours.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview with Fox News Channel’s “Special Report” that Iran is “ready for negotiation” and has been for the past 20 years. He urged the U.S. to find a solution through negotiation, and said “diplomacy is much better than war.”

Araghchi blamed terrorist groups for the violence as part of an “Israeli plot” to “drag (Trump) into the conflict.”

Britain has shut its embassy in Iran and withdrawn its diplomats as tensions spiral over security forces’ lethal crackdown on protests and speculation about U.S. action in response.

The U.K. Foreign Office said Wednesday that “we have temporarily closed the British Embassy in Tehran, this will now operate remotely.”

It said British staff have been withdrawn “due to the security situation.”

The government had already advised British citizens against traveling to Iran.

In a letter obtained by The Associated Press on Wednesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called for the top U.N. official to condemn and reject “all acts of terrorism during the unrests regardless of the incentives.”

Araghchi reiterated Iranian officials’ claims, without providing evidence, that the U.S. and Israel have been directly involved in the escalation of recent nationwide protests in Iran that have killed more than 2,500 Iranians.

“Peaceful protests started from Dec. 28, 2025 on economic grounds were sabotaged by terrorist elements who turned them into armed riots,” he wrote to U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres.

A mass funeral was held in Tehran for some 100 security force members killed in the demonstrations. Tens of thousands of mourners attended, holding Iranian flags and photos of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The caskets, draped in Iranian flags, stood stacked at least three high. Red and white roses and framed photographs of the dead covered them.

“We are very frightened because of these sounds (of gunfire) and protests,” said a mother of two shopping for fruits and vegetables, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.

“We have heard many are killed and many are injured. Now peace has been restored, but schools are closed, and I’m scared to send my children to school again.”

Ahmadreza Tavakoli, 36, told The Associated Press he witnessed one demonstration in Tehran and was shocked by the use of firearms by authorities.

“People were out to express themselves and protest, but quickly it turned into a war zone,” Tavakoli said. “The people do not have guns. Only the security forces have guns.”

At a protest march of 900 Iranian exiles and German supporters in Berlin on Wednesday night, Maryam Nejatipur, 32, told The Associated Press how unbearably worried she was about her family back home.

“They’re in a complete blackout. We don’t have any news,” said the former teacher who was forced to leave her home country about two years ago.

She said she didn’t know how to get through the days since Iran shut down the internet and phones and she could not longer find out if her family was still alive.

She sobbed and said really she was not only worried about her immediate family but all Iranians. “There are 90 million people inside Iran and they are killing all of them,” she said.

U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff has met with exiled former crown prince of Iran Reza Pahlavi, a White House official confirmed on Wednesday, speaking on condition of anonymity about the private meeting. The official provided no further details.

Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani has been meeting on Wednesday evening with officials from the Italian Ministry of Defense, the Italian Ambassador to Tehran and ambassadors from the main capitals involved in the current crisis in Iran.

The ministry reiterated its recommendation that Italian citizens should leave Iran if they are able to do so, a statement said.

Mohammad Pakpour, commander of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, threatened Wednesday that the country would give a “decisive response” to the death of Iranian “martyrs and security protectors,” according to Iran’s semiofficial Tasnim news agency.

Pakpour reiterated Iranian officials’ claims that U.S. and Israel have instigated these protests and that they are the “main killers” of the hundreds of casualties. He added that those countries will “receive the response in the appropriate time.”

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in a call Wednesday with Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani that Pakistan would continue to play a positive role in maintaining regional peace and stability, a statement from Sharif’s office said.

The two leaders discussed recent developments in the Middle East and expressed satisfaction with the current trajectory of bilateral relations between Pakistan and Qatar, according to the statement.

Sharif praised Qatar’s role in promoting peace, dialogue and mediation in the region and acknowledged its efforts to defuse tensions through diplomatic means.

Both leaders agreed to remain in close contact in the coming days, the statement said.

Scores gathered on Wednesday in a show of support for the ongoing anti-government protests in Iran.

Some held posters of Iran’s exiled crown prince Reza Pahlavi and others of U.S. President Donald Trump. One placard read: “President Trump! Iranian people deserve freedom … Hear their voice.”

“We are here to be the voice of the Iranian people against the Islamic regime in Iran,” Esi Fallah told The Associated Press. “We are here to ask President Trump for help ... The regime in Iran fires at its people.”

Fallah added that he has not been able to contact his family in Iran due to the internet blackout. “We don’t know anything about them since Friday,” he said.

Another protester, Mahzad, who only gave his first name, said: “For five days, I have no news from my family or my friends. I don't know if they are still alive."

“U.S. citizens should leave Iran now. Consider departing Iran by land to Türkiye or Armenia, if safe to do so,” the virtual U.S. embassy in Tehran said in a statement Wednesday.

This is the third alert in five days.

The embassy also said U.S.-Iranian dual nationals must exit Iran using their Iranian passports.

Some personnel at Qatar’s Al Udeid Air Base have been advised to evacuate by Wednesday evening, a U.S. official said. The decision came as a senior official in Iran brought up an earlier Iranian attack there.

The official, who spoke to The Associated Press on Wednesday on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive plans, described the move at the base as a precautionary measure. The official wouldn’t go into any further details about the move, including whether the evacuation was optional or mandatory, if it affected troops or civilian personnel, or the number of those advised to leave, citing the need for operational security.

It comes as anti-government protests in nearby Iran continue and U.S. President Donald Trump has said that he is willing to conduct military operations in the country if the government continues to retaliate against the protesters.

SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service dropped its fees to allow protesters in Iran to send updates of what is happening inside the Islamic Republic following a communication blackout by authorities.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has not officially announced the decision and did not respond to a request for comment, but activists told The Associated Press that Starlink has been available for free to anyone in Iran with the receivers since Tuesday.

“Starlink has been crucial,” said Mehdi Yahyanejad, an Iranian whose nonprofit Net Freedom Pioneers has helped smuggle units into Iran, pointing to footage that emerged Sunday showing rows of bodies at a forensic medical center near Tehran.

Starlink is banned in Iran.

Tens of thousands of mourners thronged the streets near Tehran University for a mass funeral of security forces and civilians on Wednesday.

After Iranian state television reported that 300 coffins would be on display at Tehran University, Associated Press reporters there saw around 100. It wasn’t clear why there was a discrepancy.

Many held Iranian flags and identical photos of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and their relatives. The caskets, covered in Iranian flags, were stacked at least three high in the backs of trucks and covered with red and white roses and framed photographs of people who were killed. The crowd chanted and beat their chests in response to an emcee speaking from a stage.

One man in the crowd held up a photo of U.S. President Donald Trump during the Pennsylvania assassination attempt, emblazoned with: “The arrow doesn’t always miss!”

The presenter, his voice booming across the crowd, blamed the U.S. for the unrest. “All of our problems are because of America, today’s economic problems are because of American sanctions. Death to America!” he yelled, prompting the same chant from the tens of thousands of people, dressed mostly in black.

India's Embassy in Tehran urged Wednesday all Indian nationals to leave Iran, citing what it called an “evolving situation” in the Islamic Republic.

The statement, posted on X, also advised Indian citizens to remain highly vigilant and avoid areas where protests are taking place.

German police said Wednesday the two climbed over a fence into embassy grounds and tore down an Iranian flag. Both wanted to hoist two pre-Islamic Republic flags but failed, German news agency dpa reported.

They left the grounds when guards used pepper spray and were detained on the sidewalk outside.

The incident happened late Tuesday.

Major Middle East governments were discouraging the Trump administration from waging a war with Iran, fearing “unprecedented consequences” in the volatile region, an Arab Gulf diplomat said Wednesday.

The Cairo-based diplomat, who was given anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak to the media, said major governments in the region, including Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, have been “in constant contact” with the U.S. administration over a potential American strike on Iran that could explode into a “full-blown war.”

Such a war will “certainly” have dire repercussions “not only on the Middle East but also on the global economy," he said.

Iranian state television said Wednesday’s mass funeral in Tehran would include 300 bodies of security force members and civilians. The funeral is expected to take place at Tehran University under heavy security.

The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said 2,417 of the dead were protesters and 147 were government-affiliated. Twelve children were killed, along with 10 civilians it said were not taking part in protests. More than 18,400 people have been detained, the group said.

Gauging the demonstrations and the death toll from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll, given the communications being disrupted in the country.

Melanie Lidman contributed from Jerusalem.

Trump’s decision to impose a 25% tariff on countries that trade with Iran could impact India, an expert said, as New Delhi already faces existing 50% U.S. trade levies due to its purchases of Russian oil.

Abhijit Mukhopadhyay, a senior economist at the Chintan Research Foundation in New Delhi, said the bigger risk is not India-Iran trade, but India’s access to the U.S. market, as its exports to Iran are modest.

India mainly exports rice, tea, sugar, pharmaceuticals and electrical machinery to Iran, while importing dry fruits and chemical products. Textiles and garments, gems and jewelry and engineering goods are likely to be the most vulnerable sectors, he said.

Trump’s latest move also could affect India’s investments in Iran, including the strategically important Chabahar port, which gives India a trade route to Afghanistan, Central Asia and Europe while bypassing Pakistan, Mukhopadhyay said.

Iran’s judiciary chief signals fast trials and executions for those detained in nationwide protests.

Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei made the comment in a video shared by Iranian state television on Wednesday.

He emphasized the need for swift action, saying delays would lessen the impact.

His remarks challenge Trump, who warned Iran about executions in an interview aired Tuesday.

Trump stated the U.S. would take strong action if Iran proceeded with executions. The situation highlights escalating tensions between the two countries over the handling of the protests.

Dozens of Pakistani students studying in Iran have returned home through a remote southwestern border crossing, a Pakistani immigration official said Wednesday.

Federal Investigation Agency spokesperson in Quetta city, Samina Raisani, said about 60 students crossed into Pakistan on Tuesday through Gabd border in Balochistan province with valid travel documents.

More students were expected to return through the same crossing later Wednesday, she said.

Mudassir Tipu, Pakistan’s ambassador to Iran, said Tuesday that Iranian universities had rescheduled exams and permitted international students to leave the country.

The satellite internet provider Starlink now offers free service to people in Iran who have access to the company's receivers, activists said Wednesday.

Mehdi Yahyanejad, a Los Angeles-based activist who helped get the units into Iran, told The Associated Press that the free service had started. Other activists also confirmed in messages online that the service was free.

Starlink has been the only way for Iranians to communicate with the outside world since authorities shut down the internet Thursday night as nationwide protests swelled and they began a bloody crackdown against demonstrators.

Starlink did not immediately acknowledge the decision.

This frame grab from videos taken between Jan. 9 and Jan. 11, 2026, and circulating on social media purportedly shows images from a morgue with dozens of bodies and mourners after crackdown on the outskirts of Iran's capital, in Kahrizak, Tehran Province. (UGC via AP)