Wireless wellbeing and personalised health

Our research in wireless wellbeing aims to:

• develop monitoring systems specific to nutrition, physical activity and sleep
• define preferences for data storage mechanisms that better monitor and modify behaviour
• explore effective educational and motivational messaging
• interact with health practitioners and support circles on influential communication strategies.

Due to the rapid pace of change in the way we use technology, we’re beginning to see an increase in the number of mobile phone apps and sensing devices that measure food intake and monitor physical activity. 

Our research explores how wireless sensing and communications can empower people who want to improve their health and stay healthy by self-monitoring their progress. These technologies can positively influence people’s behaviour around nutrition, physical activity and sleep. 

Through the combination of this unobtrusive form of mobile measurement and data mining, we’re now able to discover and present conclusive behavioural patterns to users. These discoveries can be achieved in real time and over long periods of time. As health risks rapidly become apparent, users are empowered to take action and change their behaviour.

The positive behavioural outcomes from using these measurement and monitoring systems will help to improve people’s quality of life while preventing obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Key publications

• Allman‐Farinelli M, Chen J, Chevance G, Partridge SR, Gemming L, Patrick K, Godino J. 2020. The efficacy of electronic health interventions targeting improved sleep for achieving prevention of weight gain in adolescents and young to middle‐aged adults: A systematic review. Obesity Reviews [more]
  
• Tang l, Meyer J, Epstein DA, Bragg K, Engelen L, Bauman A, Kay J. 2018. Defining Adherence: Making Sense of Physical Activity Tracker Data. ACM Interact. Mob. Wearable Ubiquitous Technol. [more]
• Allman-Farinelli M, Partridge S, McGeechan K, et al. 2016. A Mobile Health Lifestyle Program for Prevention of Weight Gain in Young Adults (TXT2BFiT): Nine-Month Outcomes of a Randomized Controlled Trial. mHealth JMIR [more]

Key grants

• National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC)/Project Grants ($987,646 - 2018 to 2020) Strengthening the evidence foundation for public health guidelines.

Project merits

1. Using apps and wearables to monitor dietary intake and physical activity

• 17 peer-reviewed publications
• invitations to author three expert reviews (375 citations in total)
• invited presentations at the International Conference on Diet and Activity measurement in 2015 and for Nutrition Society in 2019.  

2. Using digital health for nutrition and physical activity promotion

• Award of 4 PhDs, including an NHMRC Early Career Fellowship remaining at CPC
• 9 publications and 13 related publications

• Professor Margaret Allman-Farinelli (Project Node Co-Leader)
• Professor Adrian Bauman
• Associate Professor Teresa Davis
• Dr Becky Freeman
• Lana Hebden
• Professor Judy Kay
• Associate Professor Bob Kummerfeld
• Associate Professor Mu Li
• Dr Fiona Martin
• Associate Professor Robyn McConchie
• Dr Stephanie Partridge (Project Node Co-Leader)
• Dr Philayrath Phongsavan
• Professor Philip Poronnik
• Associate Professor Anna Rangan
• Lie Ming Tang
• Annette Wong
• Associate Professor Kalina Yacef
• Farahaz Yekeh