Grover Francis Powers (August 12, 1887 – April 18, 1968) was an American

pediatrician Pediatrics (American English) also spelled paediatrics (British English), is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, pediatrics covers many of their youth ...

. He served as director of the

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

department of pediatrics from 1927 to 1952. He won the second

John Howland Award The John Howland Award is the highest honor bestowed by the American Pediatric Society (APS). Named in honor of John Howland (1873–1926), the award, with its accompanying medal, is presented annually by the American Pediatric Society for "dis ...

in 1953.

Early life and edudcation

Grover Powers was born in 1887 in

Colfax, Indiana Colfax is a town in Perry Township, Clinton County, Indiana, United States. The population was 691 at the 2010 census. The town was originally known as Midway since it was a half-way point on the IC&L Railroad between Chicago & Louisville. Rail ...

, and grew up in

Lafayette, Indiana Lafayette ( ) is a city in and is the county seat of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, located northwest of Indianapolis and southeast of Chicago. According to the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of Lafayette ...

. He graduated from

Purdue University Purdue University is a Public university#United States, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, United States, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded ...

with a B.S. in 1908 and from

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

with an M.D. in 1913.

Career

The first seven years of his career were spent at the

Johns Hopkins Hospital Johns Hopkins Hospital (JHH) is the teaching hospital and biomedical research facility of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1889, Johns Hopkins Hospital and its school of medicine are considered to be the foundin ...

department of pediatrics, where he worked with

John Howland John Howland (February 23, 1673) was an English indentured servant who accompanied the English Separatists and other passengers when they left England on the to settle in Plymouth Colony. In later years, he was an executive assistant and pers ...

, Edwards A. Park,

Kenneth Blackfan Kenneth Blackfan (September 9, 1883 – November 29, 1941) was an American pediatrician. He took particular interest in nutrition and hematology. A childhood blood disorder, Diamond–Blackfan anemia, is partly named after him. Early in his career ...

, and William McKim Marriott. He moved to the

department of pediatrics with Edwards A. Park in 1921, and succeeded Park as chairman of the department in 1927, a position he remained in until his retirement in 1952. Powers' contributions to pediatrics included proposing guidelines for the care of premature babies and for the management of infantile

diarrhea Diarrhea (American English), also spelled diarrhoea or diarrhœa (British English), is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements in a day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration d ...

. He wrote an important paper in 1925 that outlined the principles of infant feeding, arguing that diets should be analyzed by a total caloric intake, including a combination of protein, fat and carbohydrates; these principles were adopted by nutritionists constructing adult diets in World War II. Another popular paper simplified the different options of

cow's milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of lactating mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digest solid food. Milk contains many nutr ...

-based

infant formula Infant formula, also called baby formula, simply formula (American English), formula milk, baby milk, or infant milk (British English), is a manufactured food designed and marketed for feeding to babies and infants under 12 months of age, ...

s, which received thousands of international reprint requests. He proposed giving liver extract as a nutritional supplement to children with

celiac disease Coeliac disease (British English) or celiac disease (American English) is a long-term autoimmune disorder, primarily affecting the small intestine. Patients develop intolerance to gluten, which is present in foods such as wheat, rye, spel ...

, and in 1949 he won the Borden Award in Nutrition for his research in pediatric nutritional deficiencies. Powers presented his ideas on creating residential institutions for intellectually disabled children to

Wilbur Lucius Cross Wilbur Lucius Cross (April 10, 1862 – October 5, 1948) was an American literary critic who served as the 71st governor of Connecticut from 1931 to 1939. Biography Born in 1862 in Mansfield, Cross attended Natchaug School in Willimantic. He ...

, the

Governor of Connecticut The governor of Connecticut is the head of government of Connecticut, and the commander-in-chief of the U.S. state, state's Connecticut Military Department, military forces. The Governor (United States), governor has a duty to enforce state laws, ...

, which eventually contributed to the creation of the

Southbury Training School Southbury Training School is a large residential facility located in Southbury, Connecticut, Southbury, Connecticut. It was built in the 1930s as a large state-funded and state-operated residential and habilitative facility for adults with int ...

in Southbury,

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

Recognition anddeath.

Powers served as president of the

American Pediatric Society The American Pediatric Society (APS) is the first pediatric society established in North America. Created in 1887, the APS pursues a vision of an engaged, inclusive, and impactful community of pediatric thought leaders. The APS mission is to shape t ...

and received the society's highest honor, the

, in 1953. He also received a

Lasker Award In 1945 Albert Lasker and Mary Woodard Lasker created the Lasker Awards. Every year since then the award has been given to the living person considered to have made the greatest contribution to medical science or who has demonstrated public ser ...

from U.S. President

Lyndon B. Johnson Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), also known as LBJ, was the 36th president of the United States, serving from 1963 to 1969. He became president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, under whom he had served a ...

. He died in 1968 in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Powers, Grover 1887 births 1968 deaths American pediatricians Johns Hopkins Hospital physicians People from Clinton County, Indiana People from Lafayette, Indiana Physicians from Indiana Johns Hopkins School of Medicine alumni Purdue University alumni Recipients of the John Howland Award