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The Kids researchers will use nearly $8.5 million awarded by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) to tackle health issues including respiratory disease, brain cancer, vaccination and Aboriginal health.

Research

Ingestion of prebiotics during pregnancy and lactation may have immunomodulatory benefits for the developing fetal and infant immune system and provide a potential dietary strategy to reduce the risk of allergic diseases. We sought to determine whether maternal supplementation with dietary prebiotics reduces the risk of allergic outcomes in infants with hereditary risk.

ORIGINS has several sub-projects exploring allergy development within the cohort, with a focus on nutritional strategies for allergy prevention.

Interventions and explorations that focus on modifiable elements of the early life environment are being investigated, to assess and improve all aspects of physical and psychological wellbeing - both in childhood and in later life. These include nutrition, physical activity, time in nature, built environments, plastics and pollutants.

The BioMood project will study how following a Mediterranean diet during pregnancy affects the gut microbiome, metabolism, and inflammation, with the expectation that it will promote a healthier microbiome and better mental health.

Publications, papers and findings coming out of ORIGINS and its sub-projects

Research

Dietary intake during the first year of life is a key determinant of a child's growth and development. ORIGINS is a longitudinal birth cohort study investigating factors that contribute to a 'healthy start to life' and the prevention of non-communicable diseases.

Research

Pat Peter Susan Tom Jennifer Holt Richmond Prescott Snelling Kent PhD, DSc, FRCPath, FRCPI, FAA MBBS MRCP(UK) FRACP MBBS BMedSci PhD FRACP BMBS DTMH

Research

Food allergy affects families' quality of life, can be lifelong and life-threatening, urging the identification of early modifiable risk factors. Formula feeding in the first days of life may increase the risk of cow's milk allergy, a risk often attributed to cow's milk allergens exposure. Early formula feeding also reduces the colostrum intake, the first 3 days' milk, which is rich in bioactive compounds critical for immune and gut health. This study investigates whether partial colostrum feeding increases the risk of food allergy beyond cow's milk.

What if researchers could shop for different data to help uncover how, when and why chronic conditions such as asthma, obesity, allergies and poor mental health develop?