Research challenges rural Queenslanders to get active

New research undertaken jointly by the USQ and the University of Queensland (UQ) (through Health Promotion Queensland) has challenged rural Queenslanders to ask themselves ‘are you as active as you think you are?'.

Providing a picture of the opportunities and barriers to physical activity in rural Queensland, the research involved multiple visits to rural shires to determine the facilities, programmes and support that are available for both structured and unstructured activity.

Project Chief Investigator and Senior Research Fellow at USQ's Centre for Rural and Remote Area Health (CRRAH) Dr Robert Eley said that the research had involved almost 150 interviews to determine the types of physical activity undertaken by residents and their views on the challenges associated with ‘getting active' in their communities.

'Face to face interviews were conducted with close to 150 representatives of councils, community organisations and local sport, recreation and health providers, which gathered opinion and complemented previous reported findings,' Dr Eley said.

'The literature, the visits, the interviews and mail surveys undertaken in three of the larger shires provided a rigorous research methodology to collect data.

'The results provide interesting insights to physical activity in rural Queensland, with many barriers to physical activity identified.

'Some such as time and caring commitments are similar to those reported for urban residents, however there are barriers, particularly those associated with distance and climate, which are distinctly rural.

'Ingenuity and adaptiveness are important in meeting the particular challenges these factors raise.'

The research also found that the diversity of rural Queensland led to varying amounts of physical activity in different locations.

'Overall the availability and variety of opportunities for physical activity appear not to be a major barrier to residents of rural towns,' Dr Eley said.

'However, not surprisingly, the research found that the diversity of rural Queensland results in levels and patterns of physical activity that differ from location to location.

'Recognition of this diversity will be important in ensuring that support to increase physical activity is adapted to specific local circumstances.'

Dr Eley added that fewer than 50% of the rural adults surveyed achieved the national recommended levels of 30 minutes of moderate to intensive physical activity on most days, while almost 20% reported no physical activity at all in the week prior to the survey.

'It is recognised that rural life is changing and that getting sufficient physical activity through daily work is probably less common than in the past.

'Yet despite this many rural Queenslanders believe that they continue to gain sufficient activity through their daily tasks.

'A cultural shift may be required so that undertaking physical activity outside work for both rural men and women across all age groups becomes a part of rural life.

'Rural residents are challenged to spend a few minutes comparing their daily routines with those of their parents and grandparents and ask themselves ‘are you as active as you think you are?'.'

Queensland Health will be acting on the recommendations of the research early next financial year, which will include engaging further with rural communities across the state.

Media Contact: Josh Ada, USQ Media, +61 7 4631 2559