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Most health institutions failed to address acetaminophen-autism misinformation on Instagram, audit finds (opens in a new tab)

medicalxpress.com · 2026-10-02

Short answerEvidenceSource

Short answer

Mostly not supported

Mostly not supported.

3 claims go further than the study. One other point was not covered by the paper.

  • 1 supported
  • 3 overstated
  • 1 not covered

Checked against the study summary. The full text wasn't available, so some details couldn't be settled either way.

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Follow the evidence trail
1
2

NewsLink checks it

Mostly not supported

Three of five claims overstate the study. One of five checks out. One claim the study doesn't address.

  • 1 supported
  • 3 overstated
  • 1 not covered
Open claim evidence
3
Then inspect each claim

Evidence layer

Claim by claim

Each claim gets a verdict. Expand it to see the evidence directly below.

5 claims in this story

Showing all 5 claimsChoose a verdict to focus the list.

Claim 1 of 5OverstatedMost public health institutions failed to respond promptly to misinformation on social media that falsely claimed acetaminophen use during pregnancy is linked to autism.View evidenceHide evidence

Why this verdict

The abstract supports that most sampled institutions did not post relevant Instagram content during the defined window: 12/62 (19%) posted, and nonresponders continued unrelated activity. However, the headline wording broadens the evidence from a predefined sample of pediatric health institutions on public Instagram accounts to 'most public health institutions' on 'social media' generally, and frames this as a failure to respond promptly. The headline therefore outruns the narrower abstract evidence.

1

Study evidence

Proportion of institutions posting relevant content during the controversy.12/62 (19%)

“Cross-sectional audit of public Instagram accounts of 62 pediatric health institutions from September 22 to November 15, 2025.”
Claim 2 of 5OverstatedThe American Academy of Pediatrics was identified as the fastest and most active account to respond during the period, while only 14 of 65 institutions (21.5%) posted anything relevant to correct false claims.View evidenceHide evidence

As stated14 of 65 institutions (21.5%)

Why this verdict

The abstract supports a low response proportion, but the story reports the wrong denominator and numerator: the profile says 12 of 62 institutions (19%), not 14 of 65 (21.5%). The profile also says AAP and ACOG posted on day 0, so identifying AAP alone as the fastest omits that it was tied with ACOG. The supplied abstract profile does not verify that AAP was the 'most active' account.

1

Study evidence

Proportion of institutions posting relevant content during the controversy.12/62 (19%)

“Cross-sectional audit of public Instagram accounts of 62 pediatric health institutions from September 22 to November 15, 2025.”
Claim 3 of 5OverstatedResearchers reviewed public Instagram posts from 65 accounts, including top children's hospitals, medical societies and state health departments, to assess their responses to misinformation from September through November 2025.View evidenceHide evidence

As stated65 accounts; September through November 2025

Why this verdict

The abstract supports the general method: a cross-sectional audit of public Instagram accounts from children’s hospitals, medical societies, and selected state health departments during Sept. 22–Nov. 15, 2025. But the story’s stated sample size is wrong: the paper profile says 62 institutions, not 65 accounts. The exact date range is also less specific in the story. The claim is therefore not fully supported as stated.

1

Study evidence

Proportion of institutions posting relevant content during the controversy.12/62 (19%)

“Cross-sectional audit of public Instagram accounts of 62 pediatric health institutions from September 22 to November 15, 2025.”
Claim 4 of 5Not coveredOf the 26 relevant posts analyzed, all used plain-language formatting and myth-busting framing, but the average reading level was well above the average eighth-grade reading level in the U.S.; no multilingual content was identified.View evidenceHide evidence

As stated26 relevant posts

Why this verdict

The abstract profile supports that 26 relevant posts were analyzed, that readability was high by reported metrics, and that none were multilingual. However, it does not provide evidence for the story’s claims that all posts used plain-language formatting or myth-busting framing. At abstract depth, those specific content-format claims cannot be verified from the supplied profile.

1

Study evidence

Among 26 relevant Instagram posts, 88% included resource links.88%

“Two reviewers independently coded relevant posts for prespecified content and accessibility features.”
Claim 5 of 5SupportedNone of the state health departments addressed the topic, and children's hospitals took as long as 51 days to address it.View evidenceHide evidence

As statedas long as 51 days

Why this verdict

This matches the abstract profile: no sampled state health department posted relevant content, and hospital time to first relevant post ranged from 3 to 51 days.

1

Study evidence

Proportion of institutions posting relevant content during the controversy.12/62 (19%)

“Cross-sectional audit of public Instagram accounts of 62 pediatric health institutions from September 22 to November 15, 2025.”
Then look for missing context

Context layer

What the story left out

Important study details the story did not include.

  • The study was a cross-sectional audit of public Instagram accounts from a predefined sample of 62 pediatric health institutions during Sept. 22–Nov. 15, 2025.

    The story reflects the general audit design, Instagram platform, institutional categories, and Sept.–Nov. window, but it reports 65 accounts rather than the abstract’s 62 institutions and does not give the precise date window.

    From cross-sectional audit

  • Primary response-rate finding: 12 of 62 institutions (19%) posted relevant content, totaling 26 relevant posts.

    The story correctly mentions 26 relevant posts, but its institution-level response rate is reported as 14 of 65 (21.5%), which conflicts with the abstract profile’s 12 of 62 (19%).

    From cross-sectional audit

  • The analysis was limited to public Instagram accounts in a predefined institutional sample and may not generalize to all pediatric institutions, all public health institutions, or other social media platforms.

    The story caveats note that the work was an abstract and an audit, but they do not acknowledge this interpretation-changing limitation. This omission matters because some story wording generalizes to public health institutions and social media more broadly.

    From cross-sectional audit

  • Posts outside the Sept. 22–Nov. 15, 2025 window, private or ephemeral posts such as Instagram Stories, and non-Instagram communications were not captured.

    The story does not mention that the audit excluded communications outside the defined time window, ephemeral/private Instagram content, or non-Instagram channels.

    From cross-sectional audit

  • Classification of relevant content depended on coding decisions by reviewers; the abstract profile notes two independent coders but no interrater reliability statistics.

    The story does not mention the coding-decision limitation or the lack of reliability statistics in the abstract profile.

    From cross-sectional audit; Social media content coding (manual, dual independent review) and readability scoring

2 things the story did carry across
  • Timing finding: AAP and ACOG both posted on day 0; hospital time to first relevant post ranged from 3 to 51 days; no sampled state health department posted relevant content.
  • Relevant-post content/accessibility analysis found 26 posts, mean Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 11.4, mean SMOG Index 10.2, and 0% multilingual content.
Then read the study layer

Study layer

Study at a glance

Scan the study first. Expand only the parts you want to inspect.

Pieces of work

2

Evidence read

study summary

Lead result

secondary data

1Lead resultsecondary dataDescribe whether, when, and how often sampled pediatric health institutions posted on Instagram during the 2025 acetaminophen–autism controversy (including timing to first post and posting frequency vs ongoing unrelated activity).cross-sectional auditExpand

In plain English

Cross-sectional audit of public Instagram accounts from 62 pediatric health institutions between Sept 22 and Nov 15, 2025 found that few institutions posted about the acetaminophen–autism controversy: 12 of 62 institutions (19%) posted relevant content (26 total relevant posts). Time to first relevant post varied (hospitals 3–51 days; American Academy of Pediatrics and ACOG on day 0). Nonresponding institutions remained active on Instagram (one hospital posted 108 unrelated items).

Key findings

  • Proportion of institutions posting relevant content during the controversy.12/62 (19%)
  • Total number of relevant posts identified and their readability.26 relevant posts; mean Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level 11.4; SMOG Index 10.2
“Cross-sectional audit of public Instagram accounts of 62 pediatric health institutions from September 22 to November 15, 2025.”
What this piece can’t prove
  • Cross-sectional audit limited to a specific date window (Sept 22–Nov 15, 2025); posts outside this window not captured.
  • Analysis limited to public Instagram accounts in a predefined institutional sample and may not generalize to all pediatric institutions or other social platforms.
  • Classification of 'relevant' content relies on coding decisions, though two reviewers independently coded posts.
  • Private or ephemeral posts (e.g., Instagram Stories) and non-Instagram communications were not captured by the scraping approach.
2secondary dataAssess accessibility/communication quality of relevant Instagram posts (content features and accessibility features), including readability and multilingual availability.Social media content coding (manual, dual independent review) and readability scoringExpand

In plain English

Content and accessibility features of 26 Instagram posts from sampled pediatric institutions were manually coded by two independent reviewers and assessed for readability (Flesch–Kincaid, SMOG); most posts included resource links and directions to a provider, readability exceeded recommended targets, and none were multilingual.

Key findings

  • Among 26 relevant Instagram posts, 88% included resource links.88%
  • Among 26 relevant posts, 73% directed audiences to a health care provider.73%
“Two reviewers independently coded relevant posts for prespecified content and accessibility features.”
Finally, the search trail

Method layer

NewsLink found the paper. Tessa takes you deeper.

NewsLink checks the story. Tessa is where you inspect the paper, authors, evidence, and research context.

Papers considered

The selected paper, plus nearby candidates.

PubMed, Europe PMC, Crossref · 15 candidate papers

Candidate

Acetaminophen use during pregnancy does not increase child’s chance of having autism, study finds

The Transmitter · 2024 · Crossref

Source (opens in a new tab)

And 9 more candidates considered.