Centre for Physical Activity and Nutrition Research (C-PAN)
Faculty of HMNBS
If we could give every individual the right amount of nourishment and exercise, not too little and not too much, we would have found the safest way to health (Hippocrates 460-377BC)
The foods we eat and our physical activity habits are fundamental to our health and well being. Poor nutrition and inadequate physical activity increase the risk of a number of chronic health conditions that are common in the Australian community, including heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, osteoporosis and various cancers. Improving the population's nutrition and promoting physical activity are thus important national health priorities.
The Centre's mission is to understand the role of nutrition and physical activity in common health conditions, and to develop strategies to enhance population health by improving nutrition and increasing physical activity to optimal levels.
The Centre for Physical Activity and Nutrition Research (C-PAN) brings together expertise from a wide variety of disciplines including the exercise and nutrition sciences, social and behavioural sciences, epidemiology, healthy ageing. C-PAN is organised into three complementary programs covering the full spectrum of research, from basic metabolism and physiology, through clinical and behavioural studies, to community and population-based research.
The research conducted within this program focuses on how exercise and nutrition influence musculoskeletal health across the lifespan. The program’s research initially focused on osteoporosis prevention and has now expanded to include other components of musculoskeletal health. The objective of the program is to elucidate the role of exercise and nutrition in the prevention and management of osteoporosis, muscle wasting, tendinopathy and insulin resistance. The major objectives of the group are focused on developing an evidential basis for public health initiatives aimed at improving musculoskeletal health and the clinical management of musculoskeletal disease. The expertise within the research team spans human movement and exercise physiology to applied and clinical aspects of musculoskeletal health.
This program examines how nutrition and physical activity vary within different groups in the community and focuses on understanding the determinants of these important health behaviours. This includes examining nutrition and physical activity behaviours and their relationships to health, and investigating how to intervene at the personal, social and environmental levels to improve population health. Our research is concerned with: family influences on childrens and adolescents eating and physical activity; the role of the local neighbourhood environment on nutrition and physical activity; reducing sedentary pursuits like television viewing; the causes and prevention of obesity; and the influence of socio-economic factors.
The research in this program encompasses the measurement of physiological indicators of ageing and disease and the development of lifestyle interventions to promote improved health and ageing as well as quality of life. The focus of the program’s research has been on the measurement of social and environmental dimensions of lifestyle and the development and evaluation of lifestyle interventions and policy on indicators of health and quality of life. Members of the program have substantial expertise in the design and evaluation of lifestyle interventions to prevent or treat chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis. Current research is examining determinants of food choice, particularly in vulnerable populations, as well as food access, food provision and food policy developments.
