How should clinicians respond to parent's autism concerns?

Last week, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. the Trump administration's Health Secretary, outdid himself. During a Thursday Cabinet meeting, he alleged that "children who are circumcised early have double the rate of autism." This is part of Kennedy's ongoing quest to link Tylenol use in pregnancy to autism, a theory he previewed in September alongside the president. 

My guest today is worried about RFK Jr. Not just because some pregnant women may refrain from taking Tylenol unnecessarily, but because liberals seem to be missing what a dangerous political animal he really is. 

"As with Trump, liberals have made the [same] mistake with Kennedy," Dr. Rachael Bedard warns. "We are like, he's so weird. He's so unappealing. How could anyone respond to that? Everything he says is so patently crazy. There's no broad appeal here. And we are missing something happening at a frequency that the elite liberal just cannot hear that does speak to people." 

Rachael Bedard, M.D., is a columnist here at The Argument. You may have read her fantastic piece on RFK Jr.'s "mitochondrial malaise.” She is also a practicing physician specializing in internal medicine, geriatrics, and palliative care. From 2016 to 2022 she worked for Correctional Health Services, the public agency that provides medical care in New York City’s jail system. Bedard now cares for homeless New Yorkers in Brooklyn. 

The Argument is a podcast dedicated to honest, unflinching debate about the biggest questions facing democracy, culture, and our future. As the host, Jerusalem Demsas will bring together voices across the political spectrum to argue, challenge, and persuade. Each episode is a space where disagreements are confronted directly, with clarity and conviction, rather than hidden or shouted down.

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