Benjamin F. Feingold (born June 15, 1899 in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsyl ...

; died, March 23, 1982) was a pediatric allergist from California who proposed in 1973 that

salicylates Salicylic acid is an organic compound with the formula HOC6H4CO2H. A colorless, bitter-tasting solid, it is a precursor to and a metabolite of aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid). It is a plant hormone, and has been listed by the EPA Toxic Substanc ...

artificial colors Food coloring, or color additive, is any dye, pigment, or substance that imparts color when it is added to food or drink. They come in many forms consisting of liquids, powders, gels, and pastes. Food coloring is used in both commercial food ...

, and

artificial flavors A flavoring (or flavouring), also known as flavor (or flavour) or flavorant, is a food additive used to improve the taste or smell of food. It changes the perceptual impression of food as determined primarily by the chemoreceptors of the gustat ...

cause hyperactivity in children. Hyperactivity is now classified as

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by excessive amounts of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that are pervasive, impairing in multiple contexts, and otherwise age-inap ...

(ADHD).

Biography

Education

Feingold received a BS degree in 1921, and an MD in 1924, from the

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the univers ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; (Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

. He performed his internship at Passavant Hospital,

from 1924 to 1925. He did a fellowship in Pathology at the

University of Göttingen The University of Göttingen, officially the Georg August University of Göttingen, (german: Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, known informally as Georgia Augusta) is a public research university in the city of Göttingen, Germany. Founded i ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

in 1927. Between 1928 and 1929, he worked under Professor

Clemens von Pirquet Clemens Peter Freiherr von Pirquet (12 May 187428 February 1929) was an Austrian scientist and pediatrician best known for his contributions to the fields of bacteriology and immunology. Career Born in Vienna, he studied theology at the University ...

Career

Feingold worked as the house officer at the children's clinic of the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich h ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

from 1928 to 1929. From 1929 to 1932, he was clinical instructor of Pediatrics at the

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Chart ...

School of Medicine. From 1932 to 1958, he worked as

attending physician In the United States and Canada, an attending physician (also known as a staff physician or supervising physician) is a physician (usually an M.D. or D.O.) who has completed residency and practices medicine in a clinic or hospital, in the s ...

in Pediatrics and in Infectious Diseases at Los Angeles County General Hospital,

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

. He also worked as attending physician in Pediatrics at

Cedars of Lebanon Hospital Cedars-Sinai Medical Center is a nonprofit, tertiary, 886-bed teaching hospital and multi-specialty academic health science center located in Los Angeles, California. Part of the Cedars-Sinai Health System, the hospital employs a staff of over 2, ...

, Los Angeles from 1932 to 1941, and at Los Angeles Children's Hospital from 1932 to 1951. He was Chief of Pediatrics at

, Los Angeles, and an Associate in Allergy at the Los Angeles Children's Hospital from 1945 to 1951. In 1951, he joined the Kaiser Foundation Hospital and Permanente Medical Group, and established all of the Departments of Allergy for Northern California. From 1952 to 1969, he was Kaiser's chief of Allergy, and the chairman of their central research committee. From then until his death in 1982, he was Chief Emeritus, Department of Allergy, Kaiser Permanente Medical Center.

Personal life

He married Lois Maxine Adler November 18, 1930. They had four children, all born in Los Angeles, California. From 1941 to 1945, he was a commander in the US Naval Reserve. He and Lois were divorced in 1950. He married Helene Samuels on June 21, 1951.

Publications

Besides numerous technical publications in the fields of allergy and basic immunology, he published the books ''Introduction to Clinical Allergy'', ''Why your child is hyperactive'', and the ''Feingold cookbook for hyperactive children.''

The Feingold diet

To treat or prevent hyperactivity, Feingold suggested a diet that was free of

, artificial colors, artificial flavors, BHA, and

BHT BHT may refer to: * Berliner Hochschule für Technik, is the second largest University of Applied Sciences in Berlin * Black hairy tongue * Blue Hill Troupe, a New York City-based musical theatre company * Boğaziçi Hava Taşımacılığı, a f ...

. Although the diet was popular, scientific research found no good evidence that it was effective.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Feingold, Benjamin American pediatricians Diet food advocates 1899 births 1982 deaths University of Pittsburgh alumni University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine alumni People from Pittsburgh