RFK on five ‘toxins’ in everyday goods that could be causing autism epidemic

Health secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr has revealed a list of ‘toxins’ he claims could be driving a ‘tsunami’ of autism across the US.

Kennedy said he would commission a series of studies into whether mold, pesticides, food chemicals or medicines are contributing to the development of the condition.

He also suggested a surprising fifth possible factor: ultrasound scans. He noted the technology became widely available around the same time autism started spiking in the 1980s. 

RFK Jr went on to suggest industries were profiting off of environmental toxins that are driving more autism diagnoses, an apparent nod to his vaccine skepticism and crusade against artificial food ingredients.

Kennedy told reporters: ‘We need to move away from the ideology that the relentless autism prevalence increase is simply an artifact of better recognition and better diagnostic criteria.

‘The epidemic is real. Only a small percentage can be charged to better recognition or better diagnostic criteria.

An Australian study published earlier this year also found boys exposed to endocrine-disrupting chemical Bisphenol A (BPA) in the womb were six times more likely to be diagnosed with autism before age 11 than those without exposure. 

That team suggested BPA – which lines plastic and metal food packaging, an ever growing pollutant in the modern world – was associated with neurological and behavioral changes associated with autism. 

The US has also seen a surge in the use of synthetic pesticides, which some say could be a contributor, as well. Use of these chemicals increased 50-fold since 1950. 

Some research indicates up to 80 percent of Americans have detectable levels of pesticides in their blood. 

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