QUT has received a $870,950 grant to boost research in preventative and public health under the Federal Government’s 2019 MRFF Preventive and Public Health Research Grant.
QUT Faculty of Health Professor Stewart Trost was awarded the grant and the study will test the effectiveness of a highly scalable, multi-component lifestyle intervention to improve health and developmental outcomes for Australian children and families attending community playgroups.
The Healthy Conversations @ Playgroup intervention will simultaneously promote four key lifestyle behaviours associated with obesity risk (poor diet, physical inactivity, excessive screen time, and short sleep duration) and other chronic health conditions such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
Intervention effectiveness will be tested in a multi-site, cluster randomised controlled trial involving 60 community playgroups operating in Queensland, South Australia, and Western Australia.
Professor Trost said early childhood was a critical window for preventing chronic diseases such as obesity, heart disease, and type 2 diabetes.
“However, one in four Australian children aged five years and under are overweight or obese, and significant proportions of children under five fail to meet guidelines of diet quality, physical activity, screen time and sleep.
“Consequently, there continues to be an urgent need for effective and cost-effective interventions to promote healthy lifestyle behaviours such as exercise and nutrition and prevent obesity during early childhood.”
Professor Trost said the project would significantly advance knowledge on how to partner with grass roots parenting organisations and promote healthful lifestyle behaviours.
Meanwhile, Science and Engineering Faculty Associate Professor Emilie Sauret has been awarded a $900,000 2020 Australian Research Centre Future Fellowship grant. The ARC’s Future Fellowships scheme supports mid-career researchers.
Her project aims to integrate new computational methods that enable control over the design and optimisation of tools used in miniaturising chemical and biological processes.
