Paracetamol suspected to increase the risk of infantile asthma – Destination Santé

A study published in The Lancet establishes a relationship between taking paracetamol during the first year of life and the development of asthma, eczema and allergies during childhood. However, this link is yet to be confirmed…

Giving an infant paracetamol to bring down a high temperature appears to increase the risk of asthma by 46%. Worse still, for babies who are regularly given this analgesic the risk increases threefold.

However, these findings should not in any way encourage parents to stop using paracetamol. Best perhaps is to follow the official recommendations of the WHO in this matter – in other words, only use paracetamol to treat infants with a temperature of over 38.5°C.