Analysis of perinatal influences on Aboriginal child health and potential markers of chronic adult disease

Funded Activity Summary

Aboriginal babies in the Northern Territory have a low birth rate about twice that for non-Aboriginal Australians. Most of these babies are small because of poor intrauterine growth. At the same time Aboriginal children have high rates of infectious diseases and malnutrition and adults have high rates of obesity, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, renal and chronic lung diseases with a life expectancy 20 years lower than non-Aboriginal Australians. An Aboriginal birth cohort of 686 with detailed information on maternal medical and obstetric health and birth size and gestation as well as childhood growth has been reexamined in detail at 10 -12 years of age. Information about current nutrition, health and social environment has been collected. Analysis linking all this information will contribute to an understanding of the factors which predict illness in childhood and influence the development of chronic respiratory, renal, metabolic and cardiovascular diseases in Aboriginal adults. The findings will have important implications for the prevention and early intervention of the excess childhood and adult illnesses in the Aboriginal community.

Funded Activity Details

Start Date: 01-01-2001

End Date: 01-01-2002

Funding Scheme: NHMRC Project Grants

Funding Amount: $151,130.00

Funder: National Health and Medical Research Council

Research Topics

ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)

Indigenous Health

ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)

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Other Keywords

Aboriginal birth cohort | Aboriginal birth size, symmetry and gestation | Analysis of maternal, perinatal and child data base | Barker hypothesis | Child morbidity | Child morbidity and growth | Child nutrition and growth | Chronic adult disease | Markers of chronic adult disease | Prospective study

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