Daniel Moerman

Daniel Ellis Moerman (July 21, 1941 – January 9, 2026) was an American medical anthropologist and ethnobotanist, and an emeritus professor of anthropology at the University of Michigan-Dearborn. He is known for his work relating to Native American ethnobotany and the placebo effect.

Education and career Moerman was born in Paterson, New Jersey. He received his AB, MA and PhD degrees in anthropology from the University of Michigan in 1963, 1965, and 1974, respectively. He has also published studies on the placebo effect, one of which found that more people with stomach ulcers were healed when taking four placebos per day than when taking two.

Death Moerman died on January 9, 2026, at the age of 84.

Awards and honors In 1991, Moerman became the first faculty member at the University of Michigan's Dearborn campus to receive the university's Distinguished Faculty Governance Award.