Gregory Kolt

Western Sydney University · School of Science and Health

Background The sudden nature of stroke onset does not provide carers with sufficient time to prepare for the demands associated with caring. Healthcare professionals can have a vital role in providing carers with support and training, which may reduce carer stress and strain, and allow for better health and rehabilitation outcomes for the stroke su...

Objectives To understand the nature and effectiveness of interventions aimed at improving informal stroke caregiver burden, stress, and strain. Data sources In line with Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, a systematic search of CENTRAL, CINAHL, MEDLINE, Embase, APA PsycInfo, and Web of Science was conduc...

Objectives: This study investigated the barriers and facilitators to physical activity and sport participation among adolescent girls from Middle Eastern backgrounds. These factors were explored through the perspectives of both adolescent girls and parents of adolescent girls, living in Australia. Design: A qualitative study design was used to u...

Objective To understand the experiences of informal carers and the impact of role and activity changes on their health and wellbeing. Methods A systematic search of CINHAL, MEDLINE, Embase, APA PsycInfo, and Web of Science was conducted. Studies were eligible if they included informal stroke carers (≥18 years), used a qualitative methodology, expl...

Fracture liaison services (FLS) have been proven clinically effective and cost-effective in preventing subsequent fractures among patients with an existing fragility fracture. Little is known about their monetary benefits such as their return on investment (ROI). This systematic review aimed to investigate the ROI of FLS and identify the FLS charac...

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs), including coronary heart disease, stroke, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, dementia, depression and cancers, are on the rise worldwide and are often associated with a lack of physical activity (PA). Globally, the levels of PA among individuals are below WHO recommendations. A lack of PA can increase morbidity and mor...

Background Researchers are capitalising on the strong connections that sport fans have with their teams for health promotion programmes, yet no existing systematic reviews have evaluated the effectiveness of interventions delivered through professional sport. Objective The aim of this study was to systematically collate, evaluate, and synthesise t...

Background Despite the overwhelming evidence of health and other benefits of breastfeeding and recommendations to breastfeed by peak health bodies, breastfeeding rates are significantly lower than recommended in Australia and globally. Young mothers are identified as being at high risk of not breastfeeding their infants according to infant feeding...

Individual associations between lifestyle behaviours and mental health have been established; however, evidence on the clustering of these behaviours and the subsequent impact on mental health is limited. The purpose of this study was to examine cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between combined unhealthy lifestyle behaviours (physical...

Importance Cardiorespiratory fitness is an important marker of childhood health and low fitness levels are a risk factor for disease later in life. Levels of children's fitness have declined in recent decades. Whether school-based physical activity interventions can increase fitness at the population level remains unclear. Objective To evaluate th...

Reduced energy intake is a major driver of weight loss and evidence suggests that physical activity, dietary, and sleep behaviours interact to influence energy intake. Energy restriction can be challenging to sustain. Therefore to improve intervention efficacy, evaluation of how changes in physical activity, diet, and sleep behaviours mediate reduc...

Background Despite being one of the largest migrant groups in Australia, few physical activity interventions exist for Arab-Australians. The primary aim of this study was to test the feasibility and acceptability of a 12-week culturally tailored physical activity intervention for Arab-Australian women. Methods This study used a single-group pretes...

Background Evidence suggests that Arab migrant populations engage in low levels of physical activity. To our knowledge, there are no reviews that explore the perspectives of Arab migrant populations on the factors influencing physical activity. The aim of this systematic review was to thematically synthesise qualitative literature on the factors in...

Background Exclusive breastfeeding rates in many high-income countries are considerably lower than the World Health Organization recommendations. Younger mothers are less likely than older mothers to exclusively breastfeed or to exclusively breastfeed for a long duration. This systematic review explores interventions to increase the rate of exclusi...

Understanding the determinants of early introduction of sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) may assist in designing effective public health interventions to prevent childhood weight related conditions (obesity). This study explores the relationship between family/infant characteristics and the early introduction of SSBs among infants in Sydney, Austra...

The objective of this study was to systematically review health promotion interventions in the fire services. Four databases were searched for articles reporting on health promotion interventions for firefighters evaluated in randomised controlled trials (RCT) and measuring efficacy on health or lifestyle behaviour outcomes. Data were extracted to...

Background: This study compared the efficacy of two multi-component m-health interventions with a wait-list control group on body weight (primary outcome), and secondary outcomes of cardiovascular risk factors, lifestyle behaviours, and mental health. Methods: Three-arm randomised controlled trial (Enhanced: physical activity, diet, sleep, Tradi...

The aim of this study was to report on breastfeeding duration up to 24 months and determine the predictors of breastfeeding duration among women in South Western Sydney, one of the most culturally diverse and socioeconomically disadvantaged regions of New South Wales (NSW), Australia. Mother–infant dyads (n = 1035) were recruited to the Healthy Smi...

Issues addressed The objective of this study was to explore the perceptions, barriers, and enablers to physical activity (PA) and minimising sedentary behaviour among Arab‐Australians, a group who have lower levels of PA and higher rates of certain chronic diseases when compared with the general Australian population. Methods: A total of 28 Arab‐Au...

Background: Carers provide both practical and emotional support and often play an important role in coordination of care for recipients. The demands of caring may lead to increased levels of stress for the carer, which can affect mental health and quality of life. This study examined the relationship between being a carer and psychological distres...

INTRODUCTIONThe Green Prescription is a primary care programme designed to increase physical activity in individuals with low activity levels. Older adults tend to engage in insufficient physical activity to obtain health-related gain. AIMTo examine participants’ ratings of the Healthy Steps intervention and to assess how participants rated the use...

Health behaviour change programs that utilise IT-based delivery have great potential to improve health. Whilst more static Web 1.0 technologies have been somewhat effective, they often failed to promote longer-term user engagement required for greater health promotion impact. With Web 2.0 technologies, however, there is potential for greater engage...

Objective: To explore whether basketball player’s self-determined motivation interacts with environmental contexts and coach training to influence percentage time in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (%MVPA). Methods: A secondary analysis of data from 76 girls (mean ± SD, 10.5 ± 1.0 years) was conducted. Players were classified as high self-de...

Objectives To systematically review physical activity interventions among culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) populations and explore the strategies used to recruit CALD populations, the cultural adaptations made in these interventions, and the cultural adaptations used among successful interventions. Design Four electronic databases (Emb...

Objective: To examine country of birth differences in the odds of reporting chronic diseases among those of Lebanese ethnicity in comparison to those of Australian ethnicity. Methods: Participants were 41,940 Australians aged 45 years and older, sampled from the 45 and Up Study baseline dataset. Participants included those of Lebanese ethnicity...

Background This study aimed to investigate the validity of the Active Australia Survey across different subgroups and its responsiveness to change, as few previous studies have examined this. Methods The Active Australia Survey was validated against the ActiGraph as an objective measure of physical activity. Participants (n = 465) wore the ActiGra...

Diet quality, physical activity, alcohol use, smoking, sleep and sitting-time are behaviors known to influence health. The aims of this study were to identify how these behaviors co-occur to form distinct health-behavior patterns, and to investigate the relationship between these patterns, and mental and self-rated health. Members of the Australian...

Introduction: Traditional behavioural weight loss trials targeting improvements in physical activity and diet are modestly effective. It has been suggested that sleep may have a role in weight loss and maintenance. Improving sleep health in combination with physical activity and dietary behaviours may be one strategy to enhance traditional behavio...

BACKGROUND: Time spent engaging in sedentary behavior represents a growing public health concern, with many national physical activity guidelines now also including recommendations on reducing sedentary time. Sedentary behavior contributes to a range of poor health outcomes. Web-based interventions are increasingly used in health promotion given th...

This cross-sectional study of 504 community-dwelling Australian adults (328 females, 176 males, mean age 50.8 ± 13.0 years) sought to examine the reliability and validity of measurement scales for physical activity (PA) self-efficacy and outcome expectations. Participants completed demographic and anthropometric measurements, and a 23-item psychoso...

Physical activity and diet are major modifiable risk factors for chronic disease and have been shown to be associated with neighborhood built environment. Systematic review evidence from longitudinal studies on the impact of changing the built environment on physical activity and diet is currently lacking. A systematic review of natural experiments...

Physical activity and diet are major modifiable risk factors for chronic disease and have been shown to be associated with neighborhood built environment. Systematic review evidence from longitudinal studies on the impact of changing the built environment on physical activity and diet is currently lacking. A systematic review of natural experiments...

Background: Interactive web-based physical activity interventions using Web 2.0 features (e.g., social networking) have the potential to improve engagement and effectiveness compared to static Web 1.0 interventions. However, older adults may engage with Web 2.0 interventions differently than younger adults. The aims of this study were to determine...

Background: The translation of Web-based physical activity intervention research into the real world is lacking and becoming increasingly important. Objective: To compare usage and effectiveness, in real-world settings, of a traditional Web 1.0 Web-based physical activity intervention, providing limited interactivity, to a Web 2.0 Web-based physica...

To systematically review studies of health promotion intervention in the police force. Four databases were searched for articles reporting on prepost single and multigroup studies in police officers and trainees. Data were extracted and bias assessed to evaluate study characteristics, intervention design and the impact of interventions on health. D...

Objective Quality physical education (PE) is the cornerstone of comprehensive school physical activity (PA) promotion programmes. We tested the efficacy of a teacher professional learning intervention, delivered partially via the internet, designed to maximise opportunities for students to be active during PE lessons and enhance adolescents’ motiva...

Little is known regarding the health and lifestyle behaviours of Australians of Lebanese ethnicity. The available evidence suggests that Australians of Lebanese ethnicity who were born in Lebanon reportedly have higher rates of cardiovascular disease-related and type 2 diabetes-related complications when compared with the wider Australian populatio...

Participant flow. (DOCX)

While physical and mental health benefits of regular physical activity are well known, increasing evidence suggests that limiting sedentary behaviour is also important for health. Evidence shows associations of physical activity and sedentary behaviour with health-related quality of life (HRQoL), however, these findings are based predominantly on d...

Consort checklist. (DOC)

Trial protocol–Ethics committee approved. (PDF)

Objective: To assess the effect of an intervention designed to enhance physiotherapists' communication skills on chronic low back pain patients' adherence to home-based rehabilitation recommendations. Design: Cluster randomized controlled trial. Setting: Publicly funded physiotherapy clinics in Dublin, Ireland; PARTICIPANTS: Physiotherapists (...

Background The aim of this study was to determine if paediatric oral health education leaflets with a food and nutritional focus provide messages that are clear and consistent with the current Australian Dietary Guidelines and the Infant Feeding Guidelines. Methods Forty-three leaflets aimed at parents were sourced from Australian state and territo...

Background/Aim Web 2.0 internet technology has great potential in promoting physical activity. This trial investigated the effectiveness of a Web 2.0-based intervention on physical activity behaviour, and the impact on website usage and engagement. Methods 504 (328 women, 126 men) insufficiently active adult participants were randomly allocated to...

Objective To investigate whether simultaneous telephone coaching improves the clinical effectiveness of a physiotherapist-prescribed home-based physical activity program for knee osteoarthritis (OA). MethodsA total of 168 inactive adults ages 50 years with knee pain on a numeric rating scale 4 (NRS; range 0-10) and knee OA were recruited from the c...

Background Requiring individuals to obtain medical clearance to exercise prior to participation in physical activity interventions is common. The impact this has on the socio-demographic characteristic profiles of participants who end up participating in the intervention is not clear. Methods As part of the multi-component eligibility screening for...

Does a rise in crime result in increased sitting time and a reduction in physical activity? We used unobserved ("fixed")-effects models to examine associations between change in objectively measured crime (nondomestic violence, malicious damage, breaking and entering, and stealing, theft, and robbery) in Australia and measures of sitting time, walk...

Background Despite the health benefits of regular physical activity, most children are insufficiently active. Schools are ideally placed to promote physical activity; however, many do not provide children with sufficient in-school activity or ensure they have the skills and motivation to be active beyond the school setting. The aim of this project...

Background: Despite the health benefits of regular physical activity, most children are insufficiently active. Schools are ideally placed to promote physical activity; however, many do not provide children with sufficient in-school activity or ensure they have the skills and motivation to be active beyond the school setting. The aim of this projec...

Background Evidence on physical activity (PA) and transitions out of full-time employment in middle-to-older age is mainly cross-sectional and focused upon retirement. The purpose was to examine trajectories in PA before and after transitions out of full-time employment. Methods Data were obtained for 5,754 people in full-time employment aged 50–7...

Objective: To describe in detail the recruitment methods and enrollment rates, the screening methods, and the baseline characteristics of a sample of adults participating in the Walk 2.0 Study, an 18 month, 3-arm randomized controlled trial of a Web 2.0 based physical activity intervention. Methods: A two-fold recruitment plan was developed and imp...

Objective: To investigate whether simultaneous telephone coaching improves the clinical effectiveness of a physiotherapist-prescribed home-based physical activity program for knee osteoarthritis (OA). Methods: A total of 168 inactive adults ages ≥50 years with knee pain on a numeric rating scale ≥4 (NRS; range 0-10) and knee OA were recruited fr...