She is a member of the Columbia University New York Obesity Nutrition Research Center and of the Diabetes Research Center. Her interest is the relation between weight changes and diabetes risk. The focus of her research is to understand the mechanisms of improved β cell function after surgical weight loss by gastric bypass surgery. Her laboratory has contributed to the understanding of the role of incretins in diabetes remission after bariatric surgery. Laferrère is a reviewer for many journals and grants agencies, including NIH. She holds an MD from Claude Bernard University, France, and completed a residency at Lenox Hill Hospital and a fellowship at St Luke's–Roosevelt Hospital Center.