Trump Claims Autism in the United States is “Artificially Induced”

New York, (EFE) – The President of the United States, Donald Trump, stated that the rise in autism rates in the country must be caused by artificial or external factors, once again giving credence to unproven conspiracy theories related to this disorder.

“It used to be 1 [case] in 10,000, and now it’s 1 in 31 with autism. I think it’s something terrible. It has to be something external, it has to be artificially induced, it has to be,” Trump declared at an event for the Make America Healthy Again Commission (MAHA), created during his new administration.

According to an April report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), autism prevalence in the U.S. has increased from 1 in 36 children to 1 in 31 among 8-year-olds.

However, it is unclear which study Trump was referring to with the “1 in 10,000” statistic, as the CDC has no records prior to the year 2000, when autism prevalence was reported as “1 in 150” children.

Medical experts and the scientific community have rejected the use of the term “epidemic” to describe autism—previously used by Trump and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (also present at today’s event)—and attribute the large variation to the use of more advanced detection methods and revised diagnostic criteria.

“We will not allow our public health system to be taken over by the same industries that are supposed to oversee it. That’s why we demand answers—the people are demanding them—and that’s why we are here,” Trump added.

At today’s event, the MAHA Commission presented its new report, which cites ultra-processed foods, environmental chemicals, digital consumption habits, and overmedication as “key factors” allegedly harming the health of American children.

The 69-page document also calls for increased scrutiny of childhood vaccines (which Kennedy Jr. has previously claimed could cause autism, a claim Trump did not deny), eight types of food dyes, other food additives, and pesticides—without offering scientific evidence linking them to autism, ADHD, or obesity.

The report also includes multiple comparisons with European dietary standards and criticizes the U.S. food supply for its heavy reliance on such dyes and additives. Trump therefore called on food companies to gradually reduce their use.