I have published extensively in women’s history, the history of medicine and nursing, and the history of nutrition. Among my eight books are Perfect motherhood: Science and childrearing in America (New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2006) and Vitamania: Vitamins in American culture (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1996) which received the Kremers Award, 1998, from the American Institute of the History of Pharmacy. I have lectured extensively both in the United States and internationally. I am the recipient of grants and awards from the National Science Foundation, the National Library of Medicine, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the Wellcome Trust.
In 2011 I received the Mary Adelaide Nutting Award for Exemplary Historical Research and Writing, from the American Association for the History of Nursing, and in 2018 I received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Association of the History of Medicine.

Department
- Consumer Science
Affiliations
- Gender and Women’s Studies Program
- Science and Technology Studies Program
- Department of Medical History and Bioethics
Education
- PhD, History of Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- MA, History of Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- BA, Mathematics, New York University
CV
Contact
Email: rdapple@wisc.edu