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Research

Understanding variations in the built environment over time to inform longitudinal studies of young children's physical activity behaviour - The BEACHES project

We know relatively little about the role the neighbourhood built environment plays in promoting young children's physical activity, particularly its longitudinal effect either through repeated exposure to the same environment or through change in exposure by moving from one neighbourhood to another.

Research

Associations between the built environment and emotional, social and physical indicators of early child development across high and low socioeconomic neighbourhoods

Emerging evidence indicates that the built environment influences early child development. Access to, and the quality of, built environment features vary with the socioeconomic status (SES) of neighbourhoods. It has not yet been established whether the association between built environment features and early child development varies by neighbourhood SES.

Research

Built Environments and Child Health: A Policy Review’, Life Course Centre Working Paper Series, 2021-22

Childhood obesity is one of the most serious public health challenges of the 21st century and is affected not only by individual choice but also by societal and environmental influences. Childhood obesity is higher in children living in regional and remote compared with major cities, in one-parent families and for those with a disability.

Research

A cross-sectional study of factors associated with regular dog walking and intention to walk the dog

Dog walking is important for public health and dog welfare, yet some owners do not walk with their dogs regularly. This study examined factors associated with participation in regular dog walking and intention to dog walk, in order to inform physical activity interventions.

Research

Playful Bytes

Nurturing children's health together: A collaboration between early childhood education and care (ECEC) educators and parents on active play and eating well

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Exploring preferences for interventions to increase active school transportation among children and adolescents in Australia

The observed decline in children's active school transport (AST) across numerous countries over recent decades necessitates targeted, multi-level interventions to reverse this trend. However, data on young people's preferred AST interventions is lacking. This study aimed to explore children's preferences for AST interventions and assess differences between AST users and non-users among primary and secondary school students.

Research

Living closer to the beach is associated with better socioemotional development in young boys

Natural outdoor environments such as green and blue spaces have increasingly been seen as key health and wellbeing determinants for adults. However, it is unclear if these effects are seen in young children. We examined the associations between access to natural green and blue space and young children's socioemotional development. 

Research

An anti-junk food ad from a sports commercial break reduced junk food consumption inclinations, yet junk food ads had minimal to no impact

In Australia, there are concerns that unrestricted junk food advertising during sports broadcasts increases short-term junk food consumption among viewers. Therefore, the present study aimed to estimate the impact of junk food and anti-junk food advertising on consumption inclinations.

Research

The Role of Grandparents in Facilitating Children’s Physical Activity

Research suggests there is considerable opportunity to improve children's movement behaviors while they are being cared for by their grandparents. An understanding of the extent to which grandparent practices facilitate children's engagement in physical activity is critical to the development of health interventions targeting grandparent caregivers.

Research

Population-referenced percentiles for total movement and energetic play at early childhood education and care

Childcare services such as preschools and long day care centres have been identified as a key setting to promote physical activity in early childhood as they provide access to large numbers of children for prolonged periods. Yet, specific standards for the type and amount of physical activity children accumulate whilst attending childcare are lacking. The purpose of this study was to derive population-referenced percentile values for children's total movement and energetic play whilst attending early childhood education and care services.