Genevieve Stearns (1892–1997) was a biochemist, most recognized for her accomplishments in research and advocacy for nutrition, especially for women and children.
Genevieve Stearns | |
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Alma mater | University of Michigan |
Scientific career | |
Thesis | Studies on the intermediary metabolism of cystine (1930) |
Stearns was born in Zumbrota, Minnesota, to parents Clayton H. Stearns and Clara (née Beierwalter) Stearns.[1]
She received her bachelor's degree in science from Carleton College in 1912.[1][2] She taught high school for six years, and then attended graduate school at the University of Illinois and worked as a chemistry assistant while earning her master's degree.[1] Her master's degree, completed in 1920, examined creatinuria, specifically focusing on the impact of diet and sex.[3] In 1920, she worked as research associate in nutrition at the child welfare research station at the University of Iowa.[1]
After five years as a research associate, she returned to school to earn her doctorate from University of Michigan in 1928.[1] Her research focused on metabolism, and her dissertation was on the intermediary metabolism of cystine.[4]
She spent the majority of her career at the University of Iowa, and reached full professor in 1943.[1] She studied the metabolism of Vitamins A and D and minerals, growth chemistry, bone and cartilage metabolic disturbance,[1] and rickets.[5] During a 1957 interview with Stearns, she described how she studied cohorts of children, over extended periods of time, to gain a better understanding of how to best feed children.[6]
After spending a few years as a professor of pediatrics, in 1950 she was selected by the World Health Organization to go to Europe for seminars about metabolism.[7]
After her retirement, she received the Fulbright Scholarship to work at the Women’s College of Ein Shams University in Cairo, Egypt from 1960 until 1961.[8] She was selected as a fellow for the American Institute of Nutrition in 1965,[9] and was a member of the Society of Biological Chemists and the American Chemical Society. She has garnered many awards for her accomplishments, including the Alumni Achievement Award from Carleton College,[2] the Borden Award of the American Home Economics Association (1942) and the Borden Award of the American Institute of Nutrition (1946).[10]
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