Bradley M. Appelhans, PhD

Bradley M. Appelhans, PhD, is a nationally-recognized behavioral medicine researcher. His work has advanced a conceptual model of eating behavior that focuses on the interplay between brain systems involved in reward processing and inhibitory control. He developed a novel method for quantifying the healthfulness of household food purchases, and has used this approach to identify behavioral and socioeconomic variables that influence food purchasing patterns. He has been the Principal Investigator of four NIH-funded projects and several foundation grants, and has been a co-investigator on a number of epidemiologic studies and behavioral clinical trials. He holds a patent for a novel vending machine system that uses behavioral economics principles to promote healthier snack choices. Dr. Appelhans is a standing member of the Psychosocial Risk and Disease Prevention study section at NIH, an Executive Editor for the journal Appetite, a Chair of one of Rush University Medical Center’s Institutional Review Boards, and a practicing health psychologist in the Rush University Prevention Center.