Linda Snetselaar is a Professor in the Department of Epidemiology in the College of Public Health, Endowed Chair of Preventive Nutrition Education, Director of the Nutrition Center and Associate Provost of Outreach and Engagement at The University of Iowa. Through her many research, teaching, and service projects, she has helped to establish The University of Iowa as a leader in addressing important community-based health concerns, including childhood obesity and women’s health. Snetselaar’s research interests include the relationships between diet and cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, and renal disease. She is a member of both the American Dietetic Association and the Iowa Dietetic Association and directs the Dietetic-Based Research Network.
Snetselaar completed an MS degree in nutrition in the UI Department of Internal Medicine in 1975. In 1983, she received a PhD in health sciences education from the UI with an emphasis on behavior change in nutrition interventions.
She served as Chair of the American Dietetic Association’s (ADA) Council on Research from 1993-1996; during this time she also was a member of the ADA’s board of directors and its executive committee. She has received numerous honors, including the Women’s Health Initiative Achievement Award for her work in the Women’s Health Initiative Study in 1996, the Outstanding Alumni Award from UI Hospitals and Clinics Dietetic Internship Program in 1999, and the College of Public Health Faculty Service Award in 2001. In 2006, she was honored with a Medallion Award from the Iowa Dietetic Association, received the College of Public Health Faculty Education Award in 2006, and in 2010 she was honored with an award for faculty achievement in community engagement from the College of Public Health Board of Advisors at The University of Iowa. Dr. Snetselaar has served on numerous National Institutes of Health Study Section Panels and on Institute of Medicine, Food, and Nutrition Board Reviews. She has over 135 peer reviewed publications and has written two text books.