Skip to content
The Kids Research Institute Australia logo
Donate

No results yet

ORIGINS

ORIGINS is Australia's largest longitudinal cohort study of its kind. Following 10,000 WA children from their time in the womb into early childhood, ORIGINS researchers are working to better understand when and why non-communicable diseases develop, and provide solutions for early intervention to ensure every child and family flourishes throughout their lifetime.

Local Research. Global Impact.

ORIGINS is the largest study of its kind in Australia. Following 10,000 WA children from their time in the womb into early childhood, ORIGINS researchers are working to better understand how the early environment impacts the development of non-communicable diseases.

The unique long-term study is one of the most comprehensive studies of pregnant women and their families in Australia, recruiting families who received pregnancy care at , as well as families from the Joondalup and Wanneroo communities.

ORIGINS researchers are collecting detailed information from our participating families via questionnaires, in-person checks and collection of biological samples, to determine how the early environment influences the risk of a broad range of diseases, including asthma, allergies, mental health and neurodevelopmental disorders.

The total ORIGINS population will consist of more than 20,000 individuals within family units - including mothers, partners, children and siblings.

ORIGINS acknowledges core funding provided by the Telethon Perth Children’s Hospital Research Fund, Joondalup Health Campus, the Paul Ramsay Foundation, the Commonwealth Government of Australia through the Channel 7 Telethon Trust, and the Stan Perron Charitable Foundation.

Team leader

Desiree Silva
Desiree Silva

MBBS, FRACP, MPH, PhD

Co-Head, ORIGINS

Team members (13)

Lisa Gibson
Lisa Gibson

BA (Hons), MPsych, PhD

Zenobia Talati
Zenobia Talati

BSc(Hons), MPsych/PhD

Senior Research Fellow

Nina D'Vaz

Nina D'Vaz

Biobank Manager, The ORIGINS Project

Avril Bezant

Avril Bezant

Research Assistant

Bailee Renouf

Bailee Renouf

Lab Technician

Courtney Kidd

Courtney Kidd

Research & Biobank Assistant

Emma Cooper

Emma Cooper

Research Assistant

Jo Cole

Jo Cole

Research Assistant, Birth Team

Jodie Leslie

Jodie Leslie

Research Assistant

Lisa Porter

Lisa Porter

Research Assistant

Nikki Chong

Nikki Chong

Honorary Research Fellow

Poonam Pannu

Poonam Pannu

Project Officer

Dr Sarah Whalan

Dr Sarah Whalan

Data Coordinator

Colostrum as a Protective Factor Against Peanut Allergy: Evidence From a Birth Cohort

Food allergy affects families' quality of life, can be lifelong and life-threatening, urging the identification of early modifiable risk factors. Formula feeding in the first days of life may increase the risk of cow's milk allergy, a risk often attributed to cow's milk allergens exposure. Early formula feeding also reduces the colostrum intake, the first 3 days' milk, which is rich in bioactive compounds critical for immune and gut health. This study investigates whether partial colostrum feeding increases the risk of food allergy beyond cow's milk.

Infant Diet Recommendations Reduce IgE-Mediated Egg, Peanut, and Cow's Milk Allergies

Meta-analyses of randomized controlled trials have found that introducing eggs and peanuts earlier during infancy reduced egg and peanut allergy risk. Hence, infant feeding advice has dramatically changed from previous recommendations of avoidance to current recommendations of inclusion of common food allergens in infant diets.

Implementation Fidelity of a Smartphone Application for Population-Based General Movement Assessment: The Early Moves Study

To describe the infant and maternal characteristics of the Early Moves cohort and to assess representativeness to the general population, and to evaluate the implementation fidelity of an application-based collection of General Movement Assessment (GMA) videos at writhing and fidgety age.

‘You Can Sort of Justify Having That Drink’: Australian Young Adults' Perspectives on the Appeal and Influence of ‘Better for You’ Alcohol Products

Alcohol industry publications reveal that the industry targets young people with better for you (BFY) marketing that promotes the nutrition and health-oriented aspects of some products, despite the inherent harms of alcohol consumption. This research investigated how young adults conceptualise the appeal of BFY alcohol products and their potential effect on consumption, and their opinions of the alcohol industry in the context of this marketing.

Show all