An RCT to promote healthy lifestyle behaviours from infancy: an intervention to prevent childhood overweight

Funded Activity Summary

In Australia, one in four school-aged children is currently overweight and childhood obesity rates are continuing to rise. In the last five years it has become clear that rates of overweight and obesity are also rapidly increasing in pre-school age children. These are issues that are of concern to health officials as well as to parents. We understand that these rising rates in fatness relate to children's diet and activity patterns, and that these patterns, once established are likely to be patterns for life. To date, there has been relatively little research regarding the chance to support parents to establish the eating and activity patterns that will protect their children from the very beginning of life. This project seeks to support first-time parents to establish healthy eating and activity behaviours in their children using the highly utilised Maternal and Child Health Centres first time parents' groups. We believe that these groups will provide a strongly supportive environment in which to provide parents with strategies and knowledge for promoting healthy eating and activity patterns for their children, and in turn, promote healthy weight gain. This project will assess the effectiveness of this intervention.

Funded Activity Details

Start Date: 01-01-2008

End Date: 01-01-2010

Funding Scheme: NHMRC Project Grants

Funding Amount: $578,631.00

Funder: National Health and Medical Research Council

Research Topics

ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)

Health Promotion

ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)

There are no SEO codes available for this funding activity

Other Keywords

anticipatory guidance | child nutrition | childhood obesity prevention | nutrition | obesity in children | physical activity | sedentary behaviour

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