Perth Aboriginal Breast Feeding Study: Reasons For Not Breast Feeding And For The Early Cessation Of Breast Feeding.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$207,237.00
Summary
Perth Aboriginal Breast Feeding Study : Reasons for not Breast Feeding and for the Early Cessation of Breast Feeding. Breastfeeding has many advantages for the nutrition and health of infants and mothers. Recent research has shown the importance of longitudinal studies of breast feeding and the importance of family support systems, especially the attitude of the baby's father. In urban Aboriginal families the rate of breast feeding is lower and the duration is shorter than for those living in ru ....Perth Aboriginal Breast Feeding Study : Reasons for not Breast Feeding and for the Early Cessation of Breast Feeding. Breastfeeding has many advantages for the nutrition and health of infants and mothers. Recent research has shown the importance of longitudinal studies of breast feeding and the importance of family support systems, especially the attitude of the baby's father. In urban Aboriginal families the rate of breast feeding is lower and the duration is shorter than for those living in rural areas. There have been no longitudinal studies exploring the factors involved in the initiation and the continuation of breast feeding by Aboriginal women. A sample of 440 Aboriginal women will be recruited from Perth maternity hospitals. After an initial interview the women will be followed up at monthly intervals to find out their progress with breast feeding. In addition a number of focus group discussions will explore attitudes of Aboriginal women and men to breast feeding. The outcome of the studies will be information to feed back to the community through Aboriginal organisations. It will provide the basis for specifically targeted health promotion programs to maintain and to improve breast feeding rates in the Aboriginal community.Read moreRead less
Young Adult Social Transitions - Course Of Mental And Behavioural Disorders:The Victorian Adolescent Health Cohort Study
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$560,750.00
Summary
The paths young people follow into adulthood have changed markedly in the past three decades. Traditionally the adoption of a role as marital partner, parent and fulltime employee in the late teens and early twenties was accompanied by a diminution or 'maturing out' of health risk behaviours and emotional problems arising in adolescence. The social transitions into adulthood are now both delayed and in many instances changed with higher rates of cohabitation, extended teriary educational partici ....The paths young people follow into adulthood have changed markedly in the past three decades. Traditionally the adoption of a role as marital partner, parent and fulltime employee in the late teens and early twenties was accompanied by a diminution or 'maturing out' of health risk behaviours and emotional problems arising in adolescence. The social transitions into adulthood are now both delayed and in many instances changed with higher rates of cohabitation, extended teriary educational participation and part-time employment. The effect of these social changes on health risk behaviours, behavioural and mental disorders is uncertain. This proposal will undertake a further follow-up in the late twenties of a group of just under 2000 young Victorians, already studied from the age of 14 years through to the age of 24 years. This study will assess the persistence of behavioural problems such as smoking and nicotine dependence, excessive alcohol consumption and dependence, cannabis dependence, illicit drug use, risk sexual behaviour, depression and anxiety disorders. The extent to which these may be associated with successful negotiation of transitions in education, employment, relationships, parenthood and establishing an independent home will be evaluated. Alternative explanations including the severity of dependence syndrome, personality, social background and genetic risk factors will also be explored.Read moreRead less
Oxygen Toxicity As A Factor In Retinal Degenerations: Genetic And Environmental Mechanisms
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$269,250.00
Summary
This project will explore the mechanisms underlying a group of blinding diseases called Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP). They are caused by the death or degneration of the light-receptive cells of the retina of the eye (photoreceptors). It is well established that many forms of RP are caused by genetic mutations but many cases (40-50%) occur 'sporadically', i.e. without a family history. Further there is growing evidence that the rate at which genetic forms of the disease progress is strongly influenc ....This project will explore the mechanisms underlying a group of blinding diseases called Retinitis Pigmentosa (RP). They are caused by the death or degneration of the light-receptive cells of the retina of the eye (photoreceptors). It is well established that many forms of RP are caused by genetic mutations but many cases (40-50%) occur 'sporadically', i.e. without a family history. Further there is growing evidence that the rate at which genetic forms of the disease progress is strongly influenced by environmental factors, particularly light and oxygen. To analyse how these environmental factors affect the stability of the retina, we will use a range of techniques (including gene array technology) to study the molecular events which link light or oxygen stress to photoreceptor death. The work will be done in mouse 'models' of the disease. It is increasingly well established that the rodent (rat and mouse) retina and human retina share a basic structure and functional detail. These models allow intensive investigation, with results which are directly applicable to human disease. Our principal emphasis will be on three aspects of these models: (1) the molecular mechanisms induced in the retina by light stress or oxygen stress; (2) the role of mitochondria (cellular organelles essential for both cell metabolism and cell stability; and (3) genes which regulate the vulnerability of photoreceptors to oxygen stress. RP has been recognised for nearly 100 years as a leading cause of blindness in young adults. It is usually diagnosed in the young adult as a failure of night vision, but the prognosis is grim (relentlessly progressive loss of vision), and there is still no effective treatment. The work proposed will contribute to our understanding of the basic mechanisms involved, and will explore some approaches to therapy for, or at least to mitigation of the blindness of RP.Read moreRead less