Kids need more activity and less sitting, says visitor to Rockhampton
Published on 27 September, 2012
There's a common perception that young children are rather active, but recent studies in several countries show that this is often not the case.
Rockhampton people have the chance to attend a free 'Research Unplugged' presentation to discover more on this issue, from 6pm-7pm on Thursday October 25 at the Criterion Hotel function room (free finger foods will be provided). Interested people can RSVP to j.douglas@cqu.edu.au or 4923 2184 or via the Facebook Event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/413109645420231/ .
Visiting scholar Professor Greet Cardon, from Belgium's Ghent University, will discuss 'the promotion of more physical activity and less sitting in young children', including what researchers know about these behaviours, and what intervention strategies can be used.
"The importance of sufficient physical activity levels in early childhood is well documented and there is increasing evidence that too much sitting is linked to negative health outcomes," Prof Cardon says in her abstract for the talk.
"This lecture will describe what we know about physical activity and sedentary behaviours in early childhood and which factors predict these behaviours. Evidence-based guidelines and some examples of intervention strategies will be summarised on how to promote more activity and less sitting in young children in the home and pre-school environment."
'Research Unplugged' is hosted by the Institute for Health and Social Science Research (IHSSR) at CQUniversity.
* Greet Cardon has a Masters degree in Movement Sciences and in Physical Therapy and did her PhD on the prevention of back pain in children. She is a mother of three teenagers and is currently employed as a full professor at the Department of Movement and Sports Sciences, in the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences of Ghent University, in Belgium. As a chair of the research group "Physical activity, fitness and Health", her research focuses on understanding the determinants of physical activity and sedentary behaviour, as well as identifying the most effective ways to promote physical activity in different age groups, with a main focus on children and adolescents. She has written nearly 100 scientific publications on these topics and currently supervises about 20 PhD projects, including projects looking at environmental correlates, evaluating sedentary behaviours and focusing on obesity prevention. She is involved in several European projects and will chair the upcoming Annual Meeting of the International Society of Behavioural Nutrition and Physical Activity in Ghent, Belgium (May 22-25th, 2013).