BABY - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Director of Pediatric Gastroenterology at Greenwich Hospital in Greenwich, CT
- Medical Director of Ambulatory Operations at Yale New Haven Children 's Hospital
Anthony Porto, M.D., MPH, FAAP, is a pediatric gastroenterologist and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. He is an associate professor of pediatrics and associate chief of pediatric gastroenterology at Yale University.
Dr. Porto lives in Westport, Connecticut, with his husband and two children. He enjoys traveling, bike riding, and building LEGO sets.
Experience
Dr. Porto is the medical director of Ambulatory Operations at Yale New Haven Children's Hospital and medical director of Pediatrics at Greenwich Hospital in Greenwich, Connecticut. He is also the medical director of the Yale Pediatric Celiac Program.
Dr. Porto has won numerous awards, including the Norman J. Siegel Award at Yale University in 2015 for leadership and providing outstanding clinical care, and Physician of the Year during his time at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital. He has been named Castle Connolly Top Doctors since 2012.
Dr. Porto is interested in nutrition, especially the care of children who have difficulty gaining weight, feeding issues, and celiac disease.
He is the co-author of The Pediatrician's Guide to Feeding Babies and Toddlers. He writes web-based education materials as a member of the Public Education committee of the North American Society of Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition and for the American Academy of Pediatrics Healthy Children website.
Education
Dr. Porto graduated from Columbia University with a bachelor's degree in neuroscience and behavior and attended medical school at Tufts University School of Medicine, where he also received his master's in public health.
He completed his pediatric residency at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore Medical Center and his pediatric gastroenterology fellowship at the Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of New York at Columbia University.
BabyCenter's editorial policies
BabyCenter's award-winning content is created by our editorial team in partnership with qualified writers, and is reviewed by our Medical Advisory Board of doctors and other healthcare professionals as well as professional fact-checkers. Our goal is to give you the most current and accurate information available as clearly as possible, along with practical advice to help you manage and cope with every challenge you face on your parenting journey. Our editors, advisors, and fact-checkers are constantly updating and reviewing articles to ensure they're up to date, comprehensive, and helpful. Read more about our editorial process.
BabyCenter is your parenting partner.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Psychologist
- Clinical Psychologist Specializing in Translating Scientific Research for Everyday Parents
- Founder of the Nonprofit Parenting Translator Opens
- Licensed Clinical Psychologist
Cara Goodwin, Ph.D. - clinical psychologist specializing in translating scientific research for everyday parents
Cara Goodwin, Ph.D., is a licensed clinical psychologist, best-selling children's book author, and a mother to three children. She specializes in translating recent scientific research into information that is helpful, relevant, and accurate for parents and caregivers.
Experience
Goodwin has spent years researching child psychology and neuroscience and providing therapy and clinical services for children of all ages and their parents. She also wrote a children's book titled What to Do When You Feel Like Hitting, which gives children evidence-based strategies to use when they are dysregulated.
Goodwin is the founder of the nonprofit Parenting Translator Opens a new window, which translates recent scientific research into information that parents and caregivers can use in their everyday lives.
Education
Goodwin has a bachelor's degree in psychology and neuroscience from the University of Virginia, a master's degree in developmental psychiatry from Cambridge University, a master's degree in clinical psychology from Vanderbilt University, and a Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
She also completed a clinical internship at the Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities and a postdoctoral fellowship at Duke University.
BabyCenter's editorial policies
BabyCenter's award-winning content is created by our editorial team in partnership with qualified writers, and is reviewed by our Medical Advisory Board of doctors and other healthcare professionals as well as professional fact-checkers. Our goal is to give you the most current and accurate information available as clearly as possible, along with practical advice to help you manage and cope with every challenge you face on your parenting journey. Our editors, advisors, and fact-checkers are constantly updating and reviewing articles to ensure they're up to date, comprehensive, and helpful. Read more about our editorial process.
BabyCenter is your parenting partner.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Cheryl Axelrod, M.D., is a board-certified ob-gyn and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. She practices at Midwest Center for Women's Healthcare in Skokie, Illinois, and is a senior clinical instructor for the University of Chicago.
When she's not working, Dr. Axelrod loves to hang out with her husband and son, knit hats, play board games, do crosswords, and enjoy nearby Lake Michigan.
Experience
Dr. Axelrod has been practicing in the northern suburbs of Chicago since 2008, providing general obstetrics and gynecologic care to her patients while teaching and mentoring a new generation of residents and medical students. She is a fellow of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
For many years, she also worked as a hospitalist in addition to her private practice. She is a passionate advocate for women and their healthcare both in and out of the exam room.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Banking
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Chairman, Department of Anesthesiology, Long Island College Hospital, Brooklyn, New York
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Pediatrician at Golden Gate Pediatrics
- Pediatrician in Private Practice, San Francisco
Dawn Rosenberg, M.D., is a pediatrician and a member of the BabyCenter Advisory Board. She lives in San Francisco with her husband and two daughters. In her free time, she enjoys exploring the outdoors with her family and fostering kittens through the SPCA.
Experience
Dr. Rosenberg is a primary care pediatrician at Golden Gate Pediatrics, a private practice in San Francisco and Marin. She has cared for thousands of children during her 20-plus years of working as a physician. She is actively involved in medical student and resident education as an associate clinical professor at UCSF.
She is board-certified in pediatrics and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
Education
Dr. Rosenberg received her undergraduate degree from Brown University, graduating magna cum laude and a member of Phi Beta Kappa. Her medical training was at UCSF, where she was part of the medical honors society, Alpha Omega Alpha. She completed post-doctoral training at Stanford University, and stayed on as pediatric chief resident.
BabyCenter's editorial policies
BabyCenter's award-winning content is created by our editorial team in partnership with qualified writers, and is reviewed by our Medical Advisory Board of doctors and other healthcare professionals as well as professional fact-checkers. Our goal is to give you the most current and accurate information available as clearly as possible, along with practical advice to help you manage and cope with every challenge you face on your parenting journey. Our editors, advisors, and fact-checkers are constantly updating and reviewing articles to ensure they're up to date, comprehensive, and helpful. Read more about our editorial process.
BabyCenter is your parenting partner.
BabyCenter is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. Our content is doctor approved and evidence based, and our community is moderated, lively, and welcoming. With thousands of award-winning articles and community groups, you can track your pregnancy and baby's growth, get answers to your toughest questions, and connect with moms, dads, and expectant parents just like you.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Dentist on Staff at St. Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates Illinois
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Pediatrician
- Pediatrician at Pediatric Associates of NYC and NYU Langone Health
Dina DiMaggio, M.D., is a board-certified pediatrician and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. She practices general pediatrics at Pediatric Associates of NYC and NYU Langone Health. Dr. DiMaggio lives in New York City with her husband and two daughters.
Experience
Dr. DiMaggio has received numerous research awards, along with Patient's Choice Award (2008 to 2012) and compassionate doctor recognition (2010 and 2012). She was listed in 2014 and 2015 as a New York Rising Star, in 2019 and 2020 as a Castle Connolly Top Doctor in Pediatrics, and as a New York Super Doctor from 2016 to 2020.
Wanting to provide nutritious meals for her family and disheartened by the misinformation found on the internet, Dr. DiMaggio co-authored The Pediatrician's Guide to Feeding Babies and Toddlers to provide a trusted source for parents to turn to for feeding advice. To offer a source of reliable information from the relatable standpoint of both a mother of young children and a pediatrician, she also became a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and is dedicated to educating parents on the latest guidelines from the AAP.
Dr. DiMaggio has appeared on local news programs, provided her expertise for a number of parenting magazines, and has lectured on pediatric topics throughout New York City and Connecticut to groups of parents and fellow pediatricians.
Education
Dr. DiMaggio attended Barnard College, where she graduated summa cum laude and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa Society. She went on to attend medical school at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, where she was elected into the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society. She completed her pediatric residency at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore and her hematology/oncology fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
BabyCenter's editorial policies
BabyCenter's award-winning content is created by our editorial team in partnership with qualified writers, and is reviewed by our Medical Advisory Board of doctors and other healthcare professionals as well as professional fact-checkers. Our goal is to give you the most current and accurate information available as clearly as possible, along with practical advice to help you manage and cope with every challenge you face on your parenting journey. Our editors, advisors, and fact-checkers are constantly updating and reviewing articles to ensure they're up to date, comprehensive, and helpful. Read more about our editorial process.
BabyCenter is your parenting partner.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor
- Director
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Director of Pediatric Emergency Medicine for the Mount Sinai Health System
C. Anthoney Lim, M.D. director of pediatric emergency medicine for the Mount Sinai Health System and medical director of the pediatric emergency department and short stay unit at Mount Sinai Beth Israel
C. Anthoney Lim, M.D., is the director of pediatric emergency medicine for the Mount Sinai Health System and the medical director of the pediatric emergency department and short stay unit at Mount Sinai Beth Israel.
Dr. Lim is also an associate professor in the departments of emergency medicine, pediatrics, and medical education at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
Experience
Dr. Lim's clinical and research interests include asthma and allergic diseases in children, pediatric trauma and point of care ultrasound, observation medicine and pediatric safety and quality improvement.
Education
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Emily Holthaus, M.D., is a board certified ob-gyn and member of BabyCenter's Medical Advisory Board. She specializes in the care of high-risk pregnancies and manages a wide range of maternal and fetal high-risk conditions.
Experience
Dr. Holthaus has special interests in diabetes, fetal development, clinical research, health literacy, and health information in social media.
Education
Dr. Holthaus received her bachelor's degree in biophysics from Johns Hopkins University and her medical degree from Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University. She completed her ob-gyn residency at Cleveland Clinic.
Dr. Holthaus is in fellowship to subspecialize in maternal fetal medicine at Loyola University Medical Center.She is also working to receive a Master of Science in clinical research methodsand epidemiology through Loyola University, Chicago.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Member of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine
Funke Afolabi-Brown, M.D., is a triple board-certified pediatric pulmonologist and sleep medicine physician. She specializes in the care of children with various sleep and breathing-related disorders.
Experience
Dr. Brown is a speaker, educator, writer, and founder of Restful Sleep MD. She helps busy women and their children prioritize sleep to achieve optimal health, thrive, and live to their fullest potential. She does this through coaching, courses, and programs focused on educating and empowering women to make sleep a priority as a critical pillar of their health.
Dr. Brown is an academic clinician and an assistant professor at the University of Pennsylvania and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. She provides care to patients in inpatient and outpatient settings with more than a decade of clinical experience.
She is also involved in program and capacity building for trainees, serving as an associate program director for the pulmonary fellowship and a director for the sleep medicine fellowship. She has worked to build curricula for trainees and mentored several hundred.
Dr. Brown is a member of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, the American Academy of Pediatrics, and the Amerian Thoracic Society. She is a frequent speaker at various conferences, summits, workshops, and association meetings.
Education
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Founder and Director of My Friend
- Hospitalist and Assistant Clinical Professor at Nemours Children 's Hospital in Orlando, Florida
- Member of the BabyCenter Advisory Board
Dr. Liz Donner is a pediatric hospitalist and member of the BabyCenter Advisory Board. She received her undergraduate degree in Biology at the University of Minnesota followed by a medical degree in her home state of North Dakota. She made her way south to complete pediatric residency at the University of Florida, followed by fellowship in pediatric hospital medicine through Baylor in San Antonio, TX. From there, she was hired on as an assistant clinical professor within the division of hospital medicine in Orlando, FL.
Lastly, Dr. Donner is the founder and director of My Friend the Pediatrician Opens a new window, a social media-based educational platform dedicated to spreading factual healthcare information that parents and caregivers can trust. She has a passion for evidence-based medicine, high value care, and interprofessional education.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Psychiatrist in Florida
Phyliss Nicole Taylor, M.D., PMH-C, is a board-certified general psychiatrist with a certification in perinatal mental health and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. She manages a wide range of mental health disorders including depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and psychotic disorders.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Pediatrician
- Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Utah
- Professor of Pediatrics, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City
Dr. Paul Young is an emeritus professor of pediatrics at the University of Utah and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board.. He received his B.A. from Duke University and his M.D. from Northwestern University School of Medicine. He completed two years of residency at Children's Memorial Hospital and then served two years in the U.S. Army at Fort Sill, Oklahoma.
Young completed his pediatric training in the Family Health Care Program at Boston Children's Hospital, then in 1972 he joined the faculty at the University of Vermont. In 1992, he joined the faculty at the University of Utah School of Medicine, where he remained until his retirement in 2016.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Dr. Prathima Setty is an ob-gyn and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. She earned her bachelor of arts and science degree at Stanford University and her medical degree from University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. After finishing an internship in internal medicine at Rush-Presbyterian in Chicago, she completed her obstetrics and gynecology residency at the University of Illinois at Chicago Medical Center. She was chosen to be the Women's Health Scholar at Columbia's Center for Menopause, Hormonal Disorders, and Women's Health in New York City. During her fellowship, she was awarded the Teva Fellows award. She is currently in practice in Virginia.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Dr. Rebecca Yee is an ob-gyn and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. She is affiliated with California Pacific Medical Center, where she is co-chair of the Perinatal Quality Committee and a leader in Sutter Health's Perinatal Patient Safety Program.
Dr. Yee is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. She completed her residency program at Magee Women's Hospital of the University of Pittsburgh. Upon finishing her residency, she worked at BaySpring Women's Medical Group and as a volunteer clinical instructor at University of California, San Francisco. In 2002, Dr. Yee moved to Pacific Gynecology and Obstetrics Medical Group, where she currently practices.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Sasha Hakman, M.D., M.S., is a double board-certified ob-gyn and reproductive endocrinologist with HRC Fertility in Los Angeles and member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. She specializes in treating infertility and various endocrine issues that affect the reproductive system with a special interest in assisted reproductive technology and polycystic ovary syndrome.
Experience
Dr. Hakman currently practices in Los Angeles, California. She previously practiced in Scottsdale, Arizona, and Detroit, Michigan, where she was also an assistant professor at Wayne State University.
She is a big advocate of educating both women and men about their fertility and is active on social media, including Instagram and TikTok.
Education
Dr. Hakman completed her residency in ob-gyn at Michigan State University College of Human Medicine/Providence-Providence Park Hospital and her fellowship training at the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Psychiatrist Specializing in Women 's Mental Health
Sipra Laddha, M.D. - perinatal psychiatrist specializing in women's mental health
Sipra Laddha, M.D., is a board-certified physician, trained in psychopharmacology as well as psychodynamic psychotherapy, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), and humanistic psychotherapy. Dr. Laddha specializes in perinatal psychiatry and women's mental health.
She is the mom of four wonderful kids, including a set of twins, who have been her biggest motivators and teachers.
Experience
Dr. Laddha co-founded LunaJoy Health Opens a new window, focused on holistic women's mental health services, where she is working to rapidly increase awareness and access around common (but rarely addressed) mental health struggles during vulnerable life transitions.
Education
Dr. Laddha attended medical school in New York, trained at the Emory University residency program, and served as chief resident there.
BabyCenter's editorial policies
BabyCenter's award-winning content is created by our editorial team in partnership with qualified writers, and is reviewed by our Medical Advisory Board of doctors and other healthcare professionals as well as professional fact-checkers. Our goal is to give you the most current and accurate information available as clearly as possible, along with practical advice to help you manage and cope with every challenge you face on your parenting journey. Our editors, advisors, and fact-checkers are constantly updating and reviewing articles to ensure they're up to date, comprehensive, and helpful. Read more about our editorial process.
BabyCenter is your parenting partner.
BabyCenter is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. Our content is doctor approved and evidence based, and our community is moderated, lively, and welcoming. With thousands of award-winning articles and community groups, you can track your pregnancy and baby's growth, get answers to your toughest questions, and connect with moms, dads, and expectant parents just like you.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Dermatologist in Memphis, Tennessee
Dr. Teresa S. Wright is a pediatric dermatologist in Memphis, Tennessee, and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. She is the chief of pediatric dermatology at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital in Memphis and is a professor of dermatology and pediatrics at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.
Dr. Wright enjoys spending time with her husband and pets (three dogs and two cats). She plays flute in the Memphis Wind Symphony, and loves reading and cooking.
Experience
Dr. Wright is board certified in pediatric dermatology, dermatology, and pediatrics. She joined the dermatology faculty at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital (TCH) in January 2009. In January 2012, she was promoted to Section Chief of Pediatric Dermatology at TCH. She also served as co-director of the Vascular Anomalies Program at TCH from October 2011 through March 2015.
In July 2015, Dr. Wright returned to her hometown of Memphis to join the dermatology faculty at the University of Tennessee and establish a pediatric dermatology division at LeBonheur Children's Hospital.
She has special interests and expertise in the diagnosis and management of hemangiomas and other vascular lesions, as well as pigmented lesions and pediatric melanoma.
Education
Dr. Wright completed her medical degree and pediatrics residency at the University of Massachusetts, Worcester, as well as a dermatology residency at the University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, and a pediatric dermatology fellowship at Children's Mercy Hospitals and Clinics in Kansas City, Missouri.
BabyCenter's editorial policies
BabyCenter's award-winning content is created by our editorial team in partnership with qualified writers, and is reviewed by our Medical Advisory Board of doctors and other healthcare professionals as well as professional fact-checkers. Our goal is to give you the most current and accurate information available as clearly as possible, along with practical advice to help you manage and cope with every challenge you face on your parenting journey. Our editors, advisors, and fact-checkers are constantly updating and reviewing articles to ensure they're up to date, comprehensive, and helpful. Read more about our editorial process.
BabyCenter is your parenting partner.
BabyCenter is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. Our content is doctor approved and evidence based, and our community is moderated, lively, and welcoming. With thousands of award-winning articles and community groups, you can track your pregnancy and baby's growth, get answers to your toughest questions, and connect with moms, dads, and expectant parents just like you.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Edward Marut is an ob-gyn, a reproductive endocrinology and infertility expert, and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. He has served in an IVF Medical Director position since 1983. He is the former lead of the Fertility Centers of Illinois Opens a new window, and has served as the Medical Director at Michael Reese Hospital for the IVF Program, the Center for Assisted Reproductive Technology, and Family Planning Program. He has also served as medical faculty at the University of Chicago and the University of Illinois, Chicago.
Dr. Marut completed his medical degree at Yale University School of Medicine and his residency at University of California, San Francisco. He received the National Fellowship in Reproductive Medicine, and a lifetime Board Certification in Reproductive Endocrinology after completing his fellowship at the National Institutes of Health.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Anesthesiologist, Maryland
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Founder and Director of the Parent 's Guide to Cord Blood Foundation, a 501 ( C ) ( 3 ) Charity and Educational Resource
Frances Verter, Ph.D. - founder and director of the Parent's Guide to Cord Blood Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charity and educational resource
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Pharmacist Clinical Specialist, Women 's Hospital, Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, Long Beach, California
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- IBCLC - Complex Primary Care Physician and Lactation Consultant, Valley Children 's Healthcare, Madera, California
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Dentist and Assistant Professor at Seoul National University in South Korea
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Jacqueline Dela Merced is an ob-gyn and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. She has been honored for her commitment to underserved areas of Los Angeles and for her work in minimally invasive gynecology. She attended the University of California, Los Angeles and New York Medical Center, and she completed her residency at White Memorial Medical Center in Southern California. She's currently in private practice in Greenbrae, California.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Jennifer Hirshfeld-Cytron, M.D., is an ob-gyn as well as a reproductive endocrinology and infertility expert at Fertility Centers of Illinois, and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. Dr. Hirshfeld-Cytron's personal practice philosophy stems not only from her clinical expertise but also from her experience as a woman and a mother. She understands the importance of individualized, comprehensive infertility care.
Dr. Hirshfeld-Cytron is the mother of two girls and is happily married. She enjoys running, spinning, traveling, and watching TV - both good and bad.
Experience
Dr. Hirshfeld-Cytron has been practicing medicine since 2004. She has been published widely in the areas of fertility preservation and cost analysis of fertility therapies. Her professional interests include fertility preservation, specifically for women receiving medical treatments that could impair ovarian function, as well as for women who choose to delay childbearing for personal reasons.
Education
Dr. Hirshfeld-Cytron completed her residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Chicago, followed by a three-year fellowship in reproductive endocrinology and infertility at Northwestern University.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Pediatrician
- Pediatrician at Children 's Medical Group, Atlanta, and Author of Baby & Child Health
Jennifer Shu, M.D., FAAP, is a pediatrician and a member of the BabyCenter Advisory Board. She is a mom of two and lives in Atlanta, where she enjoys music and playing tennis.
Dr. Shu has more than 20 years of private practice and academic pediatrics experience. She is a diplomate of the American Board of Pediatrics and a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Dr. Shu is co-author of Heading Home with Your Newborn and Food Fights, and is a contributor to numerous health and parenting websites, publications, and other media outlets. She is also the medical editor in chief of HealthyChildren.org.
Dr. Shu received her undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia and her medical degree from the Medical College of Virginia at Virginia Commonwealth University. She completed her pediatric residency at the University of California, San Francisco, where she also served as chief resident.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Associate Director of the Sleep Center at the Children 's Hospital of Philadelphia
Jodi Mindell, Ph.D., is board-certified in behavioral sleep medicine and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. She specializes in the assessment and treatment of pediatric sleep and sleep disorders, with a special interest in infant and toddler sleep.
Experience
Mindell is associate director of the Sleep Center at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. She is a professor of psychology at Saint Joseph's University and adjunct professor of pediatrics (psychology) at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.
Mindell is the author of numerous books, including Sleeping Through the Night: How Infants, Toddlers, and Their Parents Can Get a Good Night's Sleep, and is the chair of the Pediatric Sleep Council Opens a new window. She has a passion for providing sleep education to families and healthcare practitioners worldwide.
Education
Mindell completed her doctoral degree at the University at Albany and her internship at Brown University School of Medicine.
BabyCenter's editorial policies
BabyCenter's award-winning content is created by our editorial team in partnership with qualified writers, and is reviewed by our Medical Advisory Board of doctors and other healthcare professionals as well as professional fact-checkers. Our goal is to give you the most current and accurate information available as clearly as possible, along with practical advice to help you manage and cope with every challenge you face on your parenting journey. Our editors, advisors, and fact-checkers are constantly updating and reviewing articles to ensure they're up to date, comprehensive, and helpful. Read more about our editorial process.
BabyCenter is your parenting partner.
BabyCenter is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. Our content is doctor approved and evidence based, and our community is moderated, lively, and welcoming. With thousands of award-winning articles and community groups, you can track your pregnancy and baby's growth, get answers to your toughest questions, and connect with moms, dads, and expectant parents just like you.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Judith Venuti is an embryologist and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. She is a professor emeritus and former chair of the Department of Foundational Medical Studies at the Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine in Rochester, Michigan. She has taught human anatomy and embryology to medical, nursing, and physical therapy students for more than 25 years.
During her academic career, Venuti has been engaged in cell, developmental, and molecular biology research using a number of different animal models, including the mouse, chick, and sea urchin. She also has been involved in creating animations of human development with the goal of illustrating difficult embryological processes by showing changes in embryo form over time.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Psychologist in San Francisco Specializing in the Emotional Challenges of Postpartum Depression, Fertility and Family Planning, and Body Image Issues
Juli Fraga, Psy.D. - licensed psychologist in San Francisco specializing in the emotional challenges of postpartum depression, fertility and family planning, and body image issues
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Consultant
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Physician Assistant
Kate Shand, PA, IBCLC - physician assistant and lactation consultant working in outpatient pediatrics in Rochester, New York
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Hospitalist at Stamford Hospital in Stamford, CT and the Founder of a Faith - Based Virtual Care / Telehealth Practice, MyCatholicDoctor
Kathleen Berchelmann, M.D. - pediatric hospitalist at Stamford Hospital in Stamford, CT and the founder of a faith-based virtual care/telehealth practice, MyCatholicDoctor
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Pediatrician
- Pediatrician in Private Practice, San Francisco
Kathryn Meier, M.D., M.P.H., is a pediatrician and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. She lives with her family in San Francisco and Sonoma. She is passionate about HIIT workouts, gardening, and suspense fiction. She is a former soccer player, former water polo player, and a former triathlete. She now loves to run the trails in the Presidio of San Francisco. She has strong ties to Australia given that most of her family lives there and she is a dual citizen.
Experience
Dr. Meier has been in private pediatric practice in the San Francisco Bay Area since 2004. She is on the medical staff at California Pacific Medical Center and is an affiliate provider of UCSF. She is a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics and maintains board certification by the American Board of Pediatrics.
Dr. Meier also provides after-hours medical care at a pediatric urgent care in San Francisco. She taught a class on breastfeeding for expectant parents with the lactation consultant at Marin Health Medical Center for several years.
Education
Dr. Meier received her undergraduate degree in human biology from Stanford University, her master's degree in public health from George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and her medical degree from the University of California at Davis School of Medicine. She completed her pediatric training at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford.
BabyCenter's editorial policies
BabyCenter's award-winning content is created by our editorial team in partnership with qualified writers, and is reviewed by our Medical Advisory Board of doctors and other healthcare professionals as well as professional fact-checkers. Our goal is to give you the most current and accurate information available as clearly as possible, along with practical advice to help you manage and cope with every challenge you face on your parenting journey. Our editors, advisors, and fact-checkers are constantly updating and reviewing articles to ensure they're up to date, comprehensive, and helpful. Read more about our editorial process.
BabyCenter is your parenting partner.
BabyCenter is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. Our content is doctor approved and evidence based, and our community is moderated, lively, and welcoming. With thousands of award-winning articles and community groups, you can track your pregnancy and baby's growth, get answers to your toughest questions, and connect with moms, dads, and expectant parents just like you.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Kelley Yost Abrams, Ph.D., is a developmental psychologist and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. She is also an early childhood researcher and parenting consultant. She specializes in parent-child relationships, social-emotional development, and infant mental health.
Yost Abrams is raising two teens in Palo Alto, California, and can be found most weekends hiking in the nearby hills.
Experience
Yost Abrams leads operations at Jigsaw Diagnostics, a telehealth provider of early autism and other neurobehavioral evaluations. She provides expertise to leading pediatric organizations and has been on the forefront of digital therapeutics.
Yost Abrams founded Child Development and Parenting Consultations, and is also highly sought by parents as a provider with Maven Clinic. She has served families with a diverse range of needs, including those with premature infants, childhood behavioral difficulties, developmental delays, disability, giftedness, autism spectrum disorder, anxiety, and ADHD.
Education
Yost Abrams received her Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley. She is a fellow with ZERO to THREE and on the advisory board of Greenlightfund.org.
BabyCenter's editorial policies
BabyCenter's award-winning content is created by our editorial team in partnership with qualified writers, and is reviewed by our Medical Advisory Board of doctors and other healthcare professionals as well as professional fact-checkers. Our goal is to give you the most current and accurate information available as clearly as possible, along with practical advice to help you manage and cope with every challenge you face on your parenting journey. Our editors, advisors, and fact-checkers are constantly updating and reviewing articles to ensure they're up to date, comprehensive, and helpful. Read more about our editorial process.
BabyCenter is your parenting partner.
BabyCenter is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. Our content is doctor approved and evidence based, and our community is moderated, lively, and welcoming. With thousands of award-winning articles and community groups, you can track your pregnancy and baby's growth, get answers to your toughest questions, and connect with moms, dads, and expectant parents just like you.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Co - Founder of Black Women Birthing Justice
Linda Jones is a birth and postpartum doula and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board. Jones's recent work has been centered on training and mentoring women of color who wish to become doulas for low-income women of color as part of the BeLovedBirth Black Centering Program at Alameda Health System's Highland Hospital.
Jones is also a photographer and a mother of two, grandmother of four, and great-grandmother of four. Being able to improve the outcomes of Black women and birthing people, while birthing in hospitals, makes her feel very fulfilled.
Experience
Jones is a co-founder of Black Women Birthing Justice and is co-author of Battling Over Birth: Black Women and the Maternal Health Care Crisis in California.
She is also a member of the Preterm Birth Initiative Community Advisory Board at the University of California, San Francisco, and co-executive director with the Mothers for Mothers Postpartum Justice Project.
Jones founded a baby boutique and birthing resource center in Berkeley, California, and has been a part of the natural birth advocacy and reproductive justice community in the Bay Area for more than three decades.
Mandy Major is a mother on a mission to change how America handles the fourth trimester. After learning firsthand how little we support and inform new parents during postpartum, she left her 10-year career in digital media to dedicate herself to birth work and closing the gap in postpartum care.
When offline, she can be found by the ocean, renovating her 300-year-old farmhouse with her husband, or delighting in baking desserts with her daughter.
Michelle Pratt is a mom, nationally certified child passenger safety expert, confidence builder, and non-judgmental supporter.
Pratt is teaming up with other parents to remove the mystery of car seats, turning confusion into car seat confidence. Her followers trust her. They know they can count on her to help them tackle their child's greatest risk in a supportive and empowering way.
As a divorced mom of two, Pratt is intentionally open about navigating the ups and downs of co-parenting, building a business, and motherhood's daily challenges. Her mission at Safe in the Seat is about creating awareness, connecting with other parents, and encouraging, inspiring, and empowering them to protect their children through car seat safety.
Experience
Pratt is navigating motherhood right along with the Safe in the Seat community. As a mom herself, she's built a brand of trust and loyalty because she gets it. Moms have good days and bad days - days full of worries, sadness, and anxiety. Like so many in the Safe in the Seat community, she too struggles with her role as a mother and is a voice that offers comfort, camaraderie, and compassion - in all things mom life.
As the go-to authority for car seat safety, Pratt is helping turn car seat confusion into straight-up confidence. Through free resources on her website, helpful videos, and daily doses of safety tips and tricks, Pratt is empowering caregivers to keep their most precious cargo safe in the seat.
BabyCenter's editorial policies
BabyCenter's award-winning content is created by our editorial team in partnership with qualified writers, and is reviewed by our Medical Advisory Board of doctors and other healthcare professionals as well as professional fact-checkers. Our goal is to give you the most current and accurate information available as clearly as possible, along with practical advice to help you manage and cope with every challenge you face on your parenting journey. Our editors, advisors, and fact-checkers are constantly updating and reviewing articles to ensure they're up to date, comprehensive, and helpful. Read more about our editorial process.
BabyCenter is your parenting partner.
BabyCenter is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. Our content is doctor approved and evidence based, and our community is moderated, lively, and welcoming. With thousands of award-winning articles and community groups, you can track your pregnancy and baby's growth, get answers to your toughest questions, and connect with moms, dads, and expectant parents just like you.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- RNC, IBCLC - Inpatient Lactation Consultant in San Francisco
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics and Dermatology at Riley Children 's Hospital
- Professor Emeritus of Pediatrics and Dermatology at Riley Children 's Hospital in Indianapolis
Patricia Treadwell, M.D., is a professor emeritus of pediatrics and dermatology at Riley Children's Hospital in Indianapolis.
She received her medical degree from Cornell University Medical College and completed residencies in pediatrics and dermatology at Indiana University School of Medicine, where she is currently a faculty member. She is also an associate editor of Pediatric Dermatology: A Quick Reference Guide (American Academy of Pediatrics, 2016).
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Pediatrician in Lincoln
Phil Boucher is a developmental pediatrician in Lincoln, Nebraska, and a member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board.
He serves as adjunct faculty in the Department of Pediatrics at University of Nebraska Medical Center. He received his BS from the University of Nebraska - Lincoln and his MD from the University of Nebraska Medical Center. He completed his pediatric residency at the Children's Hospital and Medical Center in Omaha, Nebraska.
Dr. Boucher loves being a pediatrician. He has the privilege of reassuring parents that their sick baby is okay; of troubleshooting potty training and biting; of calming a three-year-old by discussing the intricacies of Paw Patrol while putting stitches in their chin. He diagnoses and treats the illnesses (physical, emotional, and educational) of infants, children, and teens. Every day is different. Every appointment is different.
In addition to his clinical practice, he has a podcast Opens a new window, YouTube channel Opens a new window, and active presence on social media including a Facebook group Opens a new window just for parents. See Dr. Boucher's parenting blog Opens a new window.
He and his wife have five young children. They alternate between moments of peaceful parenting bliss and moments of pull-your-hair-out craziness. They've struggled to balance the demands of time, work, and kids' extracurricular activities. They hope and pray they're making good decisions and that their children will turn out kind, loving, and resilient.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Physician for the Ob - Gyn Residency Program at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose, California
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Emergency Medicine Physician With Pediatric Emergency Medicine Associates in Atlanta, Georgia
Sarah Gard Lazarus, D.O., is a pediatric emergency medicine physician with Pediatric Emergency Medicine Associates. She is passionate about injury prevention, and is a founding member and co-chair of Children's Injury Prevention Program (CHIPP), a program through Children's Healthcare of Atlanta that provides a multidisciplinary approach to reduce childhood injury in Atlanta through evidence-based programs, research, education, and community outreach.
Lazarus lives in Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband, Adam Lazarus, a sportswriter, and her twin boys, Aaron and Benjamin.
Experience
Lazarus serves as the head of the Save Babies task force at CHIPP, focusing on preventing injuries in children under a year old. She is also a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the AAP Council on Injury, Violence and Poison Prevention, co-chairing the Georgia AAP committee on safe sleep.
Lazarus has mentored medical and public health students in research promoting safe sleep and community outreach projects that promote safe infant care and drowning prevention. In addition to her volunteer and research interests, she works full time in pediatric emergency rooms at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and Wellstar hospitals.
Education
Lazarus graduated from Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana, and completed medical school at Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine (Bradenton, Florida). She completed her pediatric residency and pediatric emergency medicine fellowship at Emory University.
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board
- Nurse Midwife and Full - Spectrum Doula in the San Francisco Bay Area
Job Titles:
- Member of the BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board