New Study Links Tylenol to Asthma in Teens

Teenagers from around the globe who on a regular basis take acetaminophen, commonly known as Tylenol, were more than twice as likely to have asthma compared to teenagers who never take the nonprescription pain and fever medication, according to new research.

Tylenol is deemed a safe drug and commonly used in hospitals as a painkiller rather than aspirin or ibuprofen.

The team of researchers, led by epidemiologist Richard Beasley, Director, Medical Research Institute in Wellington, New Zealand, reported their findings in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, in the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood. Their research is the first to connect Tylenol use to teen asthma. The Beasley team is among a number of research groups that over the last ten years have collected data that Tylenol increases asthma risk.

The team set out to determine whether the results effected 13- and 14-year-olds in the same study. The current research included 322,959 teens from 113 centers in 50 countries.

The frequency of Tylenol use in the study changed among countries, from two per cent in Taiwan taking it more than once a month to 23 per cent in Canada, 42 per cent in the U.S. and 68 per cent in Nigeria.

Teens who use Tylenol could also be at higher risk of other allergic conditions. Once-a-month users were approximately twice as likely as never users to have eczema, a stuffy nose (rhinitis), and itchy and watery eyes.