INRICH Member Profile Card
Michael Weitzman
New York University
Dr. Michael L. Weitzman is Professor of Pediatrics and Environmental Medicine at New York University School of Medicine and Professor of Global Public Health at the New York University School of Global Public Health. The focus of his entire career has been on understanding the social and environmental determinants of child and family health and the means to prevent or attenuate the effects of such exposures. He received his B.A. degree from CUNY Brooklyn College, his M.D. degree from SUNY Upstate Medical Center and completed clinical training in Pediatrics at SUNY Upstate Medical Center prior to studying health services research at the Harvard School of Public Health. Dr. Weitzman has served as Chief of the Divisions of General Pediatrics at two medical schools and Chair of Pediatrics at another while also having served as Director of Parent and Child Health Services for the City of Boston and leading multiple federally funded fellowship programs in Academic General Pediatrics and Pediatric Primary Care. He also was a member of the National Advisory Committee of the Robert Wood Johnson Academic Generalist Faculty Scholars Program and has mentored well over 100 individuals from Pediatrics and countless other child-health related fields.
Type of member: Regular (since 2017)
Telephone: 1-9179292284
Email Address: michael.weitzman@nyumc.org
Current research interests
While best recognized for his research on child lead and tobacco exposures, he has published more than 175 peer-reviewed papers, and an additional 200 abstracts of scientific papers presented at national and international academic meetings, and co-edited 10 books dealing with a wide range of child and family health issues, including Ambulatory Pediatrics and Primary Care Pediatrics. His research has included studies relating to multiple aspects of child mental health and school function, including both maternal and paternal depression; child nutrition, including breastfeeding, iron deficiency, vitamin D deficiency, food insecurity and the metabolic syndrome; childhood chronic conditions such as asthma and dental caries; as well as tobacco and other drug use, such as cocaine and marijuana. His lead-related research has played a central role in changing the paradigm from the treatment of affected children to the prevention of exposure. His tobacco-related research and advocacy efforts over the past 25 years have been central to the recognition of the adverse effects of prenatal tobacco and childhood SHS exposure and the involvement of the pediatric community in activities aimed at reducing such exposures. As the face of adolescent tobacco use has changed, his research and work at the local and federal levels has focused more on the epidemiology and toxicologic effects of hookah and e-cigarette use.
Research priorities
Pathways and mechanisms: Cumulative and additive social risk exposures (e.g. transient v. persistent poverty). Intergenerational influences. | Methodological issues: Methods for examining change over time including longitudinal effects studies. Need to define poverty. Regional studies (within countries). Which indicators? for example, perception of health vs. objective measures of health (these may be more reliable in studying mechanisms).
Selected publications
Weitzman, M., Rosenthal, D.G., Liu, Y.H. (2011). Paternal depressive symptoms and child behavioral or emotional problems in the United States. 128(6):1126-34. http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/128/6/1126.long
Aligne, A.C., Moss, M.E., Auinger, P., Weitzman, M. (2003). Association of Pediatric Dental Caries with Passive Smoking. JAMA, 289(10): 1258-1264. http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/196145
Flores, G., Fuentes-Afflick, E., Barbot, O., et al. (2002). The health of Latino children: urgent priorities, unanswered questions, and a research agenda. JAMA, 288(1):82-90. http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/195084
Weitzman, M., Ashengrau, A., Bellinger, D., et al. (1993). Lead-contaminated soil abatement and urban children's blood lead levels. JAMA, 269(13): 1647-54. http://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/405094
Weitzman, M., Gortmaker, S., Sobol, A. (1990). Racial, social, and environmental risks for childhood asthma. Am J Dis Child, 144(11):1189-94. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/2239856
profile updated: 04/18/2019