Dr. Julie La Barba

Dr. Julie La Barba is a Board-Certified pediatrician and Diplomate of the American Board of Lifestyle Medicine. She is an Assistant Professor at the University of Incarnate Word School of Osteopathic Medicine in Developing Osteopathic Clinical Skills (DOCS) and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Baylor College of Medicine and University of Texas Long School of Medicine. 

Growing up in an Italian produce family taught Dr. La Barba the value of fresh food and the power of gathering families in the kitchen. This fostered her professional commitment to childhood nutrition and public health advocacy for the underserved. 

After practicing medicine in the Department of Pediatric Gastroenterology, she transitioned to public health messaging as the lead health consultant for the H-E-B Body Adventure Exhibit at the Witte Museum where she developed a palatable style of health writing to meet people where they are.

As Founding Medical Director of CHEF (Culinary Health Education for Families) at Christus Children’s Hospital, Dr. La Barba empowered families to make delicious, satisfying meals with affordable ingredients that won’t break the bank or require gourmet cooking skills. https://www.chefsa.org.  Her published research on Prescriptions for Produce showed that produce availability, high menu planning and grocery shopping skills correlate with higher intake of fruits and vegetables among pregnant women. https://digitalcommons.library.tmc.edu/childrenatrisk/vol10/iss2/3/

A wife and mother of 4, Dr. La Barba hosts the Paging Dr. Mom podcast for moms in medicine who feel like they’re on call 24/7 regardless of their work arrangement. With guests ranging from doctors and coaches to chefs and authors she hopes to create a community of women lifting each other up one actionable step at a time. https://www.pagingdr.mom 

Dr. La Barba attended Vanderbilt University (B.S. Human & Organizational Development, French minor) where she was awarded a fellowship to teach English as a Second Language to French school children. She earned her medical degree from UT Health in San Antonio and completed pediatric residency training in 2006 at University Hospital and The Children’s Hospital of San Antonio.