Dr Anne Dee, President of the IMO and a Public Health Consultant, said: “Comments by US President Donald Trump and US Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr linking autism in children with both vaccines and their mothers’ paracetamol usage while pregnant are demonstrably false and hugely irresponsible.

“There is no scientific evidence to suggest that paracetamol usage while pregnant is linked to autism in children, and this assertion does nothing but undermine pregnant women's confidence in the medical system for no justifiable reason at a particularly vulnerable time in their lives.

“Furthermore, there is no credible link between vaccine uptake in children and autism. Vaccines are among the greatest scientific inventions that healthcare has seen, have saved millions of lives worldwide, are overwhelmingly safe and are a critically important safeguard against serious and potentially life-threatening illnesses.

“Governments around the world are working very hard to promote the uptake of vaccines, so it is very regrettable and unhelpful that the US administration is fuelling this type of disinformation.

“These false assertions pose a real threat to public health, and the wellbeing of children and pregnant women. I urge all people to dismiss them in full.”