Rose Frisch

She was born Rose Epstein in 1918, in the Bronx, to Russian-Jewish immigrants Louis and Stella Epstein. Her brother Lee Eastman (born Leopold Vail Epstein) is Linda McCartney's father. Frisch attended Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in 1939. She earned her master's degree in zoology the following year at Columbia University, and her Ph.D. in genetics from the University of Wisconsin in 1943. ==Research==

Focusing on the role of adipose tissue (fat) in fertility, Frisch discovered that low body fat (under 17%) could cause infertility, late menarche, and oligomenorrhea. This discovery was published in the journal Science in 1974. In her work with Grace Wyshak she also discovered that athletes were at lower risk of breast cancer. ==Legacy==

Frisch was widely respected by athletic women, who were often able to achieve a pregnancy in part by applying knowledge gathered from her research. ==Honors and awards==

• Guggenheim Fellowship – 1975–1976 • Sigma Xi national lecturer – 1988–1990 • Fellow of the Bunting Institute – 1993–1994 • Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences • Rally Day Medal for Medical Research and Reproductive Health (awarded by Smith College) • Professor Emeritus Award of Merit, Harvard School of Public Health ==Selected publications==

• • • • Frisch, Rose E. Plants that Feed the World. (1966). Van Nostrand; First Edition (1966). ASIN: B0000CNBFC - children’s book on nutrition • Frisch, Rose E. (Ed.). Adipose Tissue and Reproduction (March 1990). S Karger Publishers. . ==See also==