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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

Developmental theory and previous studies support the potential value of prodromal interventions for infants at elevated likelihood of developing autism. Past research has supported the efficacy of parent-mediated prodromal therapies with infants from as early as 7 months. We outline the rationale for implementing interventions following this model from even earlier in development and report on the feasibility of a novel intervention developed following this model of parent-mediated infant interventions.

Research

Energy drinks (ED) are popular among young people despite evidence of associated health risks. Research into the prevalence and pattern of ED intake among young people is sparse. The present study investigates the prevalence and pattern of ED intake among a large sample of adolescents, including how many consume them, how often, for what reasons and in what contexts.

Research

Regular physical activity provides children with health and developmental benefits. This study investigated if active play and walking with the family dog was associated with better social-emotional development in young children.

Research

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.

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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.

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Regular physical activity is important for children's physical and mental health, yet many children do not achieve recommended amounts of physical activity. Dog ownership has been associated with increased physical activity in children, however, there have been no longitudinal studies examining this relationship.

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Adaptations for scale-up are ubiquitous but are rarely described in detail. Adaptations may be a key reason for the "scale-up penalty" which is when there is a reduction in intervention effect size following scale-up. The Play Active intervention consists of a physical activity policy for early childhood education and care (ECEC) services, with accompanying implementation support strategies.

Research

We examined the moderating effects of parent perceptions of the neighbourhood environment on associations between objectively measured neighbourhood environment attributes and physical activity among pre-schoolers. The number of neighbourhood parks was positively associated with pre-schooler energetic play when parents had above average perceptions of access to services.

Research

Meeting 24-h movement behavior guidelines for the early years is associated with better health and development outcomes in young children. Early childhood education and care (ECEC) is a key intervention setting however little is known about the content and implementation of movement behavior polices in this context. To inform policy development this international scoping review examined the prevalence, content, development and implementation of ECEC-specific movement behavior policies.