MatCH substudy projects list
The table below contains an overview of work currently underway by researchers using data from the Mothers and their Children’s Health substudy.
Data from the substudy is available free of charge to approved researchers. To find out more, visit the Match substudy page.
| EoI | Title | Year | Collaborators | Synopsis | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W091 | Mothers’ and their Children’s Health (MatCH) study – Phase I | 2014 | Gita Mishra Peter Davies Annette Dobson Virginia Slaughter Leigh Tooth Kylie Hesketh Deborah Loxton Ilona Koupil Carol Bower Peter Sly Akilew Adane Richard Hockey Katrina Moss YungTing Chang | The MatCH study aims to take a family-centred approach to advance understanding of child health and development in terms of all the children in a family unit, by investigating factors with regard to a) the history of maternal and family characteristics; and b) their effects on the health and development of all the children in the family. The study will combine detailed data from a national cohort of women with new survey data on their children to paint a picture of family health and health service use that is unparalleled, supporting a more integrated and targeted approach to the delivery of preventative and primary health care for all Australian families. | ALSWH Substudy |
| A691/A | Determinants of Asthma in Australian Children in the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health | 2017/ 2019 | Karin English Gita Mishra Richard Hockey Colleen Loos Peter Sly Katrina Moss | This study will examine what factors are associated with childhood asthma. In the past decades the incidence of childhood asthma has been increasing, for reasons that are not fully understood. However, evidence suggests that the increasing incidence of asthma is a result of the interplay between changing environmental factors and genetics. | On hold |
| A699 | Using geocoded ALSWH data to assign environmental exposures | 2017 | Luke Knibbs David Fitzgerald Richard Hockey Tafzila Mouly | People's exposure to adverse environmental hazards like air pollution and noise is highly dependent on where they live. This is also true for exposures that may be beneficial, like green spaces. This project will use geocoded data from the ALSWH and MatCH studies.(i.e. latitude and longitude of each residential address) to develop an exposure database that will then be available to ALSWH. | Current |
| A702 | History of maternal stress and depression and relationship with child development | 2017 | Katrina Moss Gita Mishra Richard Hockey Annette Dobson Virginia Slaughter Deb Loxton | One of the key founding purposes of the MatCH substudy is to investigate the history of maternal health and its link with child outcomes. This set of analyses will investigate the history of maternal depression and related characteristics and how this predicts child development. It will combine data from ALSWH along with new data collected on the children of the 1973‐1978 cohort (as maternal‐rated measures of child development), along with linked data from the AEDC, NAPLAN and the perinatal datasets (as external‐rated measures of child development). (Note: it is proposed to do a similar set of analyses with maternal perceived stress). | Current |
| A735 | Obesity‐related behaviours of children with and without a family history of lifestyle diseases | 2018 | Katherine Downing Kylie Hesketh Jo Salmon Anna Timperio Gita Mishra Katrina Moss | Physical inactivity, sedentary behaviour and poor sleep are independently associated with cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes, and contribute substantially to the global burden of chronic disease. However, little is known about whether the profile of children’s obesity‐related behaviours (physical activity, sedentary behaviour and sleep) is different for children with and without family history of these diseases. This study aims to assess differences in BMI and obesity‐related behaviours of children with and without a family history of lifestyle diseases (type 2 diabetes, heart disease and hypertension). | Current |
| A736/A | Screen time in Australian children: Socioeconomic, maternal, parenting, time use and family environment factors associated with meeting screen time guidelines | 2018/ 2019 | Leigh Tooth Gita Mishra Katrina Moss Richard Hockey | Recently released guidelines from the Australian Government recommends maximum daily screen time for children aged 0‐<1, 1‐2, 3‐5 and 5‐12 years. Previous Australian research has linked screen time in children with socioeconomic factors in their parents (for example years of education) as well as with parenting style and home environment, however the majority of this research has investigated this issue in older children, has not linked long standing maternal factors and has not examined associations between and within families. This research aims to determine the associations between children’s screen time and sleep, diet, physical activity, physical and cognitive development, quality of life, behaviour, maternal factors, parenting styles and the home environment. | Current |
| A756 | Maternal Diets before Pregnancy and Its Effects on Birth Outcomes and Child Health and Well‐being | 2018 | Dereje Gete Gita Mishra Michael Waller | Maternal diet has a significant role in ensuring successful pregnancy outcomes for the mother and her newborn. Nutrition requirements are generally higher in pregnancy to maintain maternal adaptations and the delivery of nutrients to the fetus. In addition, preconception diet is also important for an ideal onset and development of pregnancy since early pregnancy is a critical period for placental and fetal tissue developments. Therefore, maternal diets before pregnancy could have a profound effect on birth and child outcomes. | Current |
| A774/A | The impact of maternal adverse childhood experiences and violence in adulthood on women’s health, parenting, and child outcomes | 2019 | Catherine Chojenta Deborah Loxton Nicole Reilly Peta Forder Isabelle Barnes Tahir Hassan | Research has shown that intimate partner violence adversely impacts on the physical and mental health of women over the life course and can have deleterious effects on outcomes for children exposed to this violence. Studies have also demonstrated a generational effect on offspring of mothers who experienced adverse childhood experiences (ACES) while growing up. This project will align these fields of research by examining the potenal cumulative impact of maternal exposure to adverse childhood experiences and violence across the life course on outcomes for women in the 1973‐1978 cohort and their children. | Current |
| A784 | Fast food consumption and allergy in children aged 5‐12 years in Australia: Findings from the Mothers and their Children’s Health (MatCH) study | 2019 | Leticia Ribeiro Katrina Moss | Asthma and allergic diseases are an emerging health issue among Australian children. Currently, there is no cure for such atopic conditions, and the evidence around risk and protective factors is still limited. The Westernisation of lifestyle is likely to be favouring the rise of allergies and this includes changes in diet, particularly an increasing consumption of fast foods. This study aims to build on the evidence of the association between fast food intake and the outcomes of asthma and allergies in a representative sample of Australian children, who participated in the Mothers and their Children’s Health (MatCH) study. | Current |
| A802 | Breastfeeding practices, child behaviour and development. | 2019 | Katrina Moss Annette Dobson Leigh Tooth | Infant feeding guidelines around the world recommend that babies are exclusively breastfed until approximately 6 months of age. However, in most countries this does not occur: breastfeeding is stopped before 6 months, or solids are introduced before 6 months (or both). This study aims to understand which women don’t breaseed exclusively to 6 months and why; whether infant feeding practices are related to child behaviour and development; and whether a woman’s experiences feeding her first child influence how she feeds her second child. Findings will help us to idenfy women who may benefit from extra support, and may inform development of future policy initiatives such as the Australian National Breastfeeding Strategy for 2018 and Beyond. | Current |
| A804 | Ascertainment of parity in the ALSWH/MatCH cohorts using linked perinatal records. | 2019 | Colleen Loos Gita Mishra Annette Dobson David Fitzgerald | In 2016-17, the Mothers and their Children’s Health (MatCH) study asked the 1973-78 ALSWH cohort about the health of their children (then aged under 13 years). Over 3,000 mothers (of 14,247 women originally enrolled in the ALSWH cohort in 1996) took part, reporting on 5,799 children. This project uses linked perinatal records for the whole 1973-78 cohort; and published data for same-aged women in the Australian Population; to assess the representative of both MatCH and ALSWH, in terms of the number and ages of birth children. | Current |
| A810 | Incidence and predictors of Neonatal Near Miss, and its impact on parenting and child health outcomes in Australia | 2020 | Deborah Loxton Catherine Chojenta Peta Forder Tahir Hassan Koert de Waal | The concept of neonatal near miss (NNM), a condition where a newborn has nearly died but survived, has been proposed as a tool for assessment of quality of care in neonates who suffered any life‐threatening condition. Research from other settings indicates that different factors contribute to the incidence of NNM and children with NNM history are at risk of encountering various health and health related problems during their course of life. Research also has indicated that having a high risk infant poses significant family, societal and economic impacts; although this relationship is yet to be investigated with NNM. This project will align these areas of research by investigating the incidence and predictors of NNM, and its impact on parenting and child health outcomes. | Current |
| A822/A | The Association between Maternal and Childhood NO2 and PM2.5 Exposure and Health and Development of Australian Children | 2020 | Salma Ahmed Luke Knibbs Gita Mishra Ian Yang | In 2016/2017, mothers from the 1973‐78 ALSWH cohort were invited to participate in MatCH to complete a survey about their children (aged under 13 years). Recently, air pollution exposure estimates (nitrogen dioxide and fine particulate matter) have been linked to geocoded residential addresses of ALSWH participants. Therefore, the purpose of this project is to understand the health impact of decade long air pollution exposures experienced first‐hand by mothers on the generaon that follows as well as how environment contributes to disease risk in their children. | Current |
| A837 | Associations between eating disorders in mothers and children’s diet and weight | 2020 | Gita Mishra Annette Dobson Katrina Moss Caley Tapp | Eating disorders (for example, binge-eating disorder, anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa) are mental health disorders characterised by disturbances in eating behaviours. Eating disorders can significantly impact a women’s emotional, psychosocial and physical well-being. Recent research has found children of mothers with eating disorders to be at increased risk of difficulties in feeding (for eg breastfeeding initiation and cessation) and eating behaviours, cognitive and motor developmental difficulties, display more emotional and behavioural difficulties, and to be more likely described as having a difficult temperament. The long-term impacts of a history of disordered eating and the impact this may have on the subsequent health of both the women with the history of disordered eating and her child/ren is less well known, particularly in older children (over 3 years). Of particular interest is the potential impact on a child’s diet, body weight, general development and psychosocial health and whether effects are similar for siblings. This study aims to examine these associations. | Current |