Northwestern University Nutrition Researcher Named Editor-In-Chief of Journal of the American Dietetic Association

3/10/2003

From: Lori Ferme or Bridget McManamon, 800-877-1600 ext. 4802, 4769 (for media only) both of the American Dietetic Association

CHICAGO, March 10 -- Linda Van Horn, PhD, a registered dietitian and professor of preventive medicine at Northwestern University, has been named editor-in-chief of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, the leading peer-reviewed research publication in the areas of food, nutrition and dietetics.

Van Horn, an expert on the role of diet and nutrition in the prevention and treatment of chronic diseases, will succeed Elaine R. Monsen, PhD, as editor-in-chief on June 1. Monsen, professor of health services at the University of Washington, has served as the Journal's editor for 20 years. Van Horn will retain her faculty position at Northwestern and oversee the Journal's operations from the university.

"Anyone who has published or read an article in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association since 1983, or cares about the science of food, nutrition and health, owes a very large 'Thank you' to Elaine Monsen for her service to the Journal and to the dietetics profession," said ADA President Julie O'Sullivan Maillet. "Elaine worked hard to enhance the Journal's quality, prestige and status. She will be missed as editor-in-chief, but will remain a valued colleague and friend to everyone at the American Dietetic Association," Maillet said.

"All of us at ADA are extremely pleased that Linda Van Horn, one of this country's leading researchers in the field of nutrition and dietetics, has agreed to serve as the Journal's new editor-in-chief. Through her research, her publications and her community service, Linda demonstrates the highest qualities of leadership in food and nutrition science and the role of the dietetics profession in improving people's lives. We are excited that she is bringing her leadership qualities and abilities to ADA's Journal," Maillet said.

Van Horn has published many research articles on the role of foods in reducing health risks for adults and children. Her research focuses on benefits of fat-modified diets that are high in fruits, vegetables and fiber to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, breast cancer and other chronic conditions.

Van Horn has participated in multi-center, collaborative clinical trials including the Multiple Risk Factor Intervention; Diet Intervention Study in Children; Women's Health Initiative, where she is principal investigator of the Northwestern Vanguard Study; the study of Coronary Artery Risk Reduction in Young Adults; and INTERMAP, an international study of macro- and micronutrients that affect blood pressure in adults. Van Horn has also conducted several dietary intervention studies on lipid response to oat fiber intake.

Van Horn is a recipient of the Nutrition Academic Award, funded by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, which is designed to improve and expand nutrition education in medical schools across the country. At Northwestern, Van Horn and her colleagues are integrating nutrition education and training as part of the undergraduate curriculum as well as providing continuing education for residents, graduate students and medical faculty.

With an interest in nutrition education outreach to underserved populations, Van Horn is involved in a program at Northwestern involving dietitian-supervised medical students working with low-income pregnant patients at the university medical center's Prentice Ambulatory Clinic. In addition, as part of the Chicago Breast Health Project, uninsured minority women recruited from community health clinics are provided with nutrition education as part of their visit to the Lynn Sage Breast Center for screening mammography.

Van Horn is a graduate of Purdue University and completed her dietetic internship at Indiana University Medical School. She received her master's degree in exercise physiology from the University of Pittsburgh and her doctorate in public health from the University of Illinois.