Biography

I am a board certified, practicing general pediatrician and fellowship trained clinician researcher. My research focuses on identifying strategies to best prevent and treat childhood obesity and better understand how parents influence their children’s obesity-related behaviors through the framework of parenting styles and parenting practices. My research studies have investigated how low-income parents influence in their preschool children’s fruit and vegetable intake, how parents and the neighborhoods in which families live influence the physical activity of Latino preschool children in Houston, and how parent’s attitudes and expectations influence how much TV their child watches. I have helped develop and tested for feasibility a primary care obesity intervention, called Helping HAND, which targeted parents of children 5-8 years old to use more effective parenting practices to promote healthy eating, activity and screen media use among their children. I am currently collaborating on a study to investigate how Latino parents influence their preschool aged child’s ability to self-regulate their eating and behavior. The research studies that I have led or collaborated on are funded in part by the NIH, USDA, CDC, Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Gillson Longenbaugh Foundation, and Texas Children’s Hospital.

Read More