Maternal and paternal support for physical activity and healthy eating in preschool children : a cross-sectional study

Background: Parental support is a key influence on children’s health behaviours; however, no previous investigation has simultaneously explored the influence of mothers’ and fathers’ social support on eating and physical activity in preschool-aged children. This study evaluated the singular and combined effects of maternal and paternal support for physical activity (PA) and fruit and vegetable consumption (FV) on preschoolers’ PA and FV. Methods: A random sample comprising 173 parent–child dyads completed validated scales assessing maternal and paternal instrumental support and child PA and FV behaviour. Pearson correlations, controlling for child age, parental age, and parental education, were used to evaluate relationships between maternal and paternal support and child PA and FV. K-means cluster analysis was used to identify families with distinct patterns of maternal and paternal support for PA and FV, and one-way ANOVA examined the impact of cluster membership on child PA and FV. Results: Maternal and paternal support for PA were positively associated with child PA (r = 0.37 and r = 0.36, respectively; P < 0.001). Maternal but not paternal support for FV was positively associated with child FV (r = 0.35;P < 0.001). Five clusters characterised groups of families with distinct configurations of maternal and paternal supportfor PA and FV: 1) above average maternal and paternal support for PA and FV, 2) below average maternal and paternal support for PA and FV, 3) above average maternal and paternal support for PA but below average maternal and paternal support for FV, 4) above average maternal and paternal support for FV but below average maternal and paternal support for PA, and 5) above average maternal support but below average paternal support for PA and FV. Children from families with above average maternal and paternal support for both health behaviours had higher PA and FV levels than children from families with above average support for just one health behaviour, or below average support for both behaviours. Conclusions: The level and consistency of instrumental support from mothers and fathers for PA and FV may be an important target for obesity prevention in preschool-aged children

Recovery without autonomy: Progress forward or more of the same for mental health service users?

In Western nations, the Recovery approach has become a widely accepted philosophy and treatment concept in mental health. Yet, community understanding of the Recovery approach remains largely unexplored. This study aimed to investigate (i) people's awareness of the principles underpinning the Recovery approach in mental health, and (ii) the treatment approaches people consider most important, and whether these align with the Recovery approach. To achieve these aims, a random sample of 1217 Australian adults participated in the National Social Survey (QSS) via telephone interview. People's experience with mental health services, the importance they place on various treatment approaches, and their awareness of principles underpinning the Recovery approach were assessed. Analyses were conducted using descriptive statistics. Most participants (94%) agreed that 'regardless of the severity of symptoms experienced and/or the mental illness diagnosis, being diagnosed with a mental illness means there is always hope for a meaningful life'. Moreover, most participants considered treatments in line with the Recovery approach as important. However, few participants (35%) agreed with the principle that 'after diagnosis, the person themselves should direct the long-term management of their mental illness, rather than a medical professional'. Australian people were to some extent aware of the principles underpinning the Recovery Approach, particularly with regard to hope, ability to live a meaningful life, and the importance of support from family, friends, and others living with mental illness. Nonetheless, autonomy was not highly prioritized, with the prevailing view that management of mental illness should be directed by the medical profession

The effectiveness of e-& mHealth interventions to promote physical activity and healthy diets in developing countries: A systematic review

Background: Promoting physical activity and healthy eating is important to combat the unprecedented rise in NCDs in many developing countries. Using modern information-and communication technologies to deliver physical activity and diet interventions is particularly promising considering the increased proliferation of such technologies in many developing countries. The objective of this systematic review is to investigate the effectiveness of e-& mHealth interventions to promote physical activity and healthy diets in developing countries. Methods: Major databases and grey literature sources were searched to retrieve studies that quantitatively examined the effectiveness of e-& mHealth interventions on physical activity and diet outcomes in developing countries. Additional studies were retrieved through citation alerts and scientific social media allowing study inclusion until August 2016. The CONSORT checklist was used to assess the risk of bias of the included studies. Results: A total of 15 studies conducted in 13 developing countries in Europe, Africa, Latin-and South America and Asia were included in the review. The majority of studies enrolled adults who were healthy or at risk of diabetes or hypertension. The average intervention length was 6.4 months, and text messages and the Internet were the most frequently used intervention delivery channels. Risk of bias across the studies was moderate (55.7 % of the criteria fulfilled). Eleven studies reported significant positive effects of an e-& mHealth intervention on physical activity and/or diet behaviour. Respectively, 50 % and 70 % of the interventions were effective in promoting physical activity and healthy diets. Conclusions: The majority of studies demonstrated that e-& mHealth interventions were effective in promoting physical activity and healthy diets in developing countries. Future interventions should use more rigorous study designs, investigate the cost-effectiveness and reach of interventions, and focus on emerging technologies, such as smart phone apps and wearable activity trackers

Developments in national physical activity policy : an international review and recommendations towards better practice

Physical activity {PA) is increasingly considered an important public health issue and as such requires the development of good public health policy. This paper provides a summary of the literature on policy development and defines what a policy on PA may usefully comprise. The results of an international review of national level PA policies, using a defined set of criteria, are reported. Considerable similarities were found in the methods and approaches to policy development on PA across countries, with most adopting an intersectoral approach, with consultation and partnership between sectors occurring at a high level of government. The need for action across the lifespan is recognised, as is the need for multiple strategies across a variety of settings. A review of Australian PA policy found that, after promising strategic developments through Active Australia in the late 1990s, PA policy and the role of the federal health sector has become less clear, with PA policy existing now only as a component part integrated into other chronic disease prevention policy initiatives. Recommendations towards better practice in policy making are made with particular reference to developing a clearly defined integrated national PA policy in the Australian context

Physical activity measurement : a primer for health promotion

As the importance of physical activity is recognised in health promotion, the task of measuring it becomes a central research and practice challenge. Measurement of physical activity is important to policy makers interested in population surveillance, as well as to practitioners interested in programme evaluation and research. This review outlines ‘best practice’ in physical activity measurement, and provides an inventory of established physical activity and related measures for use in health promotion programme evaluation, research and surveillance at the national and local level

An international review of policies on physical activity

To achieve the goal of population-wide increased levels of physical activity it is necessary that governments at all levels play a key role in initiating, coordinating and implementing public policies that promote physical activity, enhance environments and provide increased access by the whole population. This review provides a summary of the literature on policy, including policy formation and policy process. In the absence of any alternate, we developed a definition of what constitutes a policy on physical activity. Further, we synthesised the literature to create a set of 11 criteria for success and undertook an international review of a small but diverse group of countries to assess the focus and content of their existing or developing policy on physical activity. This inter-country comparison is restricted to a select group of diverse countries for which there was available information in English. Summary findings of this comparative research are presented as well as a brief overview of several global and regional initiatives

Age differences in physical activity intentions and implementation intention preferences

This study aimed to examine older adults’ physical activity intentions and preferred implementation intentions, and how intentions and preferred implementation intentions differ between older, middle aged and younger adults. A cross-sectional Australian wide telephone survey of 1217 respondents was conducted in 2016. Multiple and ordinal regression analyses were conducted to compare intentions and preferred implementation intentions between older (65 +), middle aged (45–64) and younger adults ( < 45). A higher percentage of older adults had no intentions to engage in regular physical activity within the next 6 months (60%) compared to younger adults (25%). Older adults’ most popular preferences included being active at least once a day and for 30 min or less and were more likely to prefer more frequent and shorter sessions compared to younger adults. Both older and middle aged adults were more likely to prefer slower paced physical activity compared to younger adults who preferred fast paced physical activity. Physical activity interventions for older adults should address the high percentage of older adults with no intentions and public health campaigns for older adults should promote 30 min daily sessions of slow paced activity. © 2017 Springer Science+Business Media, LL

Physical activity and outdoor play of children in public playgrounds—do gender and social environment matter?

Background: Few studies have delved into the relationship of the social environment with children’s physical activity and outdoor play in public playgrounds by considering gender differences. The aim of the present study was to examine gender differences and the relationship of the social environment with children’s physical activity and outdoor play in public playgrounds. Methods: A quantitative, observational study was conducted at ten playgrounds in one district of a middle-sized town in Germany. The social environment, physical activity levels, and outdoor play were measured using a modified version of the System for Observing Play and Leisure Activity in Youth. Results: In total, 266 observations of children (117 girls/149 boys) between four and 12 years old were used in this analysis. Significant gender differences were found in relation to activity types, but not in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). The presence of active children was the main explanatory variable for MVPA. In the models stratified by gender, the presence of opposite-sex children was a significant negative predictor of MVPA in girls but not in boys. Conclusions: The presence of active children contributes to children’s physical activity levels in public playgrounds. Girls’ physical activity seems to be suppressed in the presence of boys. © 2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

The rise and fall of Australian physical activity policy 1996 - 2006 : a national review framed in an international context

Background: This paper provides an historical review of physical activity policy development in Australia for a period spanning a decade since the release of the US Surgeon General's Report on Physical Activity and Health in 1996 and including the 2004 WHO Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health. Using our definition of 'HARDWIRED' policy criteria, this Australian review is compared with an international perspective of countries with established national physical activity policies and strategies (New Zealand, Canada, Brazil, Scotland, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Finland). Methods comprised a literature and policy review, audit of relevant web sites, document searches and surveys of international stakeholders. Results: All these selected countries embraced multi-strategic policies and undertook monitoring of physical activity through national surveys. Few committed to policy of more than three years duration and none undertook systematic evaluation of national policy implementation. This Australian review highlights phases of innovation and leadership in physical activity-related policy, as well as periods of stagnation and decline; early efforts were amongst the best in the world but by the mid-point of this review (the year 2000), promising attempts towards development of a national intersectoral policy framework were thwarted by reforms in the Federal Sport and Recreation sector. Several well received reviews of evidence on good practices in physical activity and public health were produced in the period but leadership and resources were lacking to implement the policies and programs indicated. Latterly, widespread publicity and greatly increased public and political interest in chronicdisease prevention, (especially in obesity and type 2 diabetes) have dominated the framework within which Australian policy deliberations have occurred. Finally, a national physical activity policy framework for the Health sector emerged, but not as a policy vision that was inclusive of the other essential sectors such as Education,Transport, Urban Planning as well as Sport and Recreation. Conclusion: Despite some progression of physical activity policy in the decade since 1995/6, this review found inconsistent policy development, both in Australia and elsewhere. Arguably, Australia has done no worse than other countries, but more effective responses to physical inactivity in populations can be built only on sustainable multi-sectoral public health policy partnerships that are well informed by evidence of effectiveness and good practice. In Australia and elsewhere prerequisites for success are political support, long-term investment and commitment to program implementation and evaluation. An urgent priority is media and political advocacy for physical activity focussed on these factors

8-year trends in physical activity, nutrition, TV viewing time, smoking, alcohol and BMI: A comparison of younger and older Queensland adults

Lifestyle behaviours significantly contribute to high levels of chronic disease in older adults. The aims of the study were to compare the prevalence and the prevalence trends of health behaviours (physical activity, fruit and vegetable consumption, fast food consumption, TV viewing, smoking and alcohol consumption), BMI and a summary health behaviour index in older (65+ years) versus younger adults (18-65 years). The self-report outcomes were assessed through the Queensland Social Survey annually between 2007-2014 (n=12,552). Regression analyses were conducted to compare the proportion of older versus younger adults engaging in health behaviours and of healthy weight in all years combined and examine trends in the proportion of younger and older adults engaging in health behaviours and of healthy weight over time. Older adults were more likely to meet recommended intakes of fruit and vegetable (OR=1.43, 95%CI=1.23-1.67), not consume fast food (OR=2.54, 95%CI=2.25-2.86) and be non-smokers (OR=3.02, 95%CI=2.53-3.60) in comparison to younger adults. Conversely, older adults were less likely to meet the physical activity recommendations (OR=0.86, 95%CI= 0.78-0.95),watch less than 14 hours of TV per week (OR=0.65, 95%CI=0.58-0.74) and be a healthy weight (OR=1.11, 95%CI=1.00-1.24). Overall, older adults were more likely to report engaging in 3, or at least 4 out of 5 healthy behaviours. The proportion of both older and younger adults meeting the physical activity recommendations (OR=0.97, 95%CI=0.95-0.98 and OR=0.94, 95%CI=0.91-0.97 respectively), watching less than 14 hours of TV per week (OR=0.96, 95%CI=0.94-0.99 and OR=0.94, 95%CI=0.90-0.99 respectively) and who were a healthy weight (OR=0.95, 95%CI=0.92-0.99 and OR=0.96, 95%CI=0.94-0.98 respectively) decreased over time. The proportion of older adults meeting the fruit and vegetable recommendations (OR=0.90, 95%CI=0.84-0.96) and not consuming fast food (OR=0.94, 95%CI=0.88-0.99) decreased over time. Although older adults meet more health behaviours than younger adults, the decreasing prevalence of healthy nutrition behaviours in this age group needs to be addressed