Researcher | Research Overview
Alan Woolf, MD, MPH is Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School (HMS), attending physician at Boston Children’s Hospital (BCH), and a member of both the Academy at HMS and the Teaching Academy at BCH. Dr. Woolf and his colleagues have done seminal research into topics in clinical toxicology, medical therapies in the management of childhood poisonings, and topics in poisoning epidemiology and prevention. He has studied the epidemiology, diagnosis, and management of childhood metals poisoning, including lead and aluminum, and their comorbidities. He has investigated the toxicity, safety and marketing of herbs and dietary supplements as well as health policy implications of use of herbs by families. Dr. Woolf’s research into poison control centers and their role in poisoning prevention has influenced subsequent legislation and public policy. He has authored over 250 original reports, scientific reviews, chapters, and other publications, many of them on topics concerning children’s poisoning and toxic environmental exposures. He is medical editor of the book: The Children’s Hospital Guide to Your Child’s Health & Development (Perseus Press, Cambridge, MA).
Active Projects
2012-2015 Aluminum levels and childhood development in one-year-old infants
Gerber Foundation
Principal Investigator
This is a study of blood and hair aluminum concentrations in normal infants aged 9-13 months and associations of these levels with other elevated heavy metals such as lead and/or childhood developmental progress.
2013-2014 Development of Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units
ATSDR Cooperative Agreement Award 1U61TS000118-05
Principal Investigator
This is a research, service and teaching grant. Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units (PEHSU) are formed to utilize collaborations between pediatric clinics and occupational/environmental clinics in order to reduce environmental health threats to children, improve access to expertise in pediatric environmental medicine, strengthen public health prevention capacity in focus areas, and educate health providers about pediatric environmental health issues. One of the purposes of PEHSU is to study the impact of environmental hazards on children, an area of growing concern and attention.
Researcher | Research Background
Dr. Alan Woolf is a pediatrician, educator, and medical toxicologist. He received a BS degree in honors biology from Stanford University, his MD from the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine, his MPH from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and an honorary master of arts from Harvard University. He completed his pediatric residency and a Robert Wood Johnson-sponsored fellowship in general academic pediatrics at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, North Carolina. Dr. Woolf is the Accreditation Council of Graduate Medical Education’s (ACGME) Designated Institutional Official (DIO) for BCH with oversight of its 40 ACGME-accredited residencies and clinical fellowships comprised of more than 500 physicians-in-training. He is also the Director of the Pediatric Environmental Health Center at BCH, Director of its fellowship training program in pediatric environmental health, and Co-Director of Region 1 Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (PEHSU), sponsored by the Association of Occupational & Environmental Clinics (AOEC), the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Agency for Toxic Substances & Disease Registry. Dr. Woolf is also Site Course Director for the pediatrics segment of the HMS Course: Patient-Doctor II. He is the Medical Director for the annual BCH pediatrics regional postgraduate course: ‘Advances in Pediatric Health Care’ and he is a member of the Committee on Continuing Education at HMS. He is a past-president of the American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC), and immediate past-president of the American Academy of Clinical Toxicology (AACT). Dr. Woolf has also served as external consultant to the World Health Organization’s International Program in Chemical Safety and as a member of the National Advisory Committee for Acute Exposure Guideline Levels for Hazardous Substances, EPA. He was recently chosen as a member of the General Hospital & Personal Use Device Panel of the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and also serves as a consultant to the Medical Devices Advisory Committee of the Center for Devices and Radiological Health of the FDA.