Helen LeBaron Hilton Award
College of Human Sciences
Established in 1976 to recognize graduates who are nationally and internationally recognized for their community leadership, meritorious service or distinguished achievement in the areas of family and consumer sciences
Susan E. Carlson
PhD Nutrition ’75
Kansas City, Mo.
Recognized internationally for her work in the area of maternal and infant nutrition, Susan Carlson has pioneered research that has made a global impact on human infant feeding practices and the neural development of the very young.
In the 1980s, Carlson conducted some of the first studies of DHA-fortified baby formula, finding that the addition of DHA improved preterm infant visual and cognitive development. The results of this study, and much more of her work, have changed the way the world feeds the very young. By way of Carlson’s pioneering work and that of others who followed her in the field, the FDA approved the use of DHA and arachidonic acid (ARA) in infant formula. U.S. infant formulas with DHA have gone from zero in 2002 to more than 90 percent in 2008.
Carlson has expanded the scope of her research to study the effect of enhanced DHA nutrition on pregnant mothers’ health and infants’ and toddlers’ neurodevelopment. One nominator writes, “Dr. Carlson’s studies have led to a sea change in maternal supplement practices and nutrition. And again it is clear that a great public health benefit will be obtained for both mother and child.”
A member of numerous worldwide professional societies and editorial boards and a highly regarded expert in the field of maternal and infant nutrition, Carlson has been recognized as the A.J. Rice Professor of Nutrition at the University of Kansas Medical Center, the 2008 recipient of the March of Dimes Agnes Higgins Award, an honorary member of the American Dietetic Association, and president-elect of the International Society for the Study of Fatty Acids and Lipids.
Carlson is an annual member of the ISU Alumni Association.
