Head
Physical Activity
Co-Lead
Obesity and Cardiometabolic Disease Program
Head
Baker-Deakin Department of Lifestyle and Diabetes
Deakin University supervisor
Professor David Dunstan is the Head of the Baker-Deakin Department of Lifestyle and Diabetes and Chair of Lifestyle and Diabetes within the Deakin Institute for Physical Activity and Nutrition. He also heads the Physical Activity laboratory at the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute and is the co-lead of the Obesity and Cardiometabolic Disease Program. A global leader in lifestyle and prevention science, his research focuses on the health risks of too much sitting and the benefits of ‘sit less, move more’ approaches across clinical, workplace and community settings, integrating epidemiology, mechanistic physiology, pragmatic trials and implementation science.
Across more than 28 years, Professor Dunstan has helped established sedentary behaviour (too much sitting) as an independent risk factor for type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and premature mortality, with his work now embedded in major national and international guidelines, including those from the World Health Organization, the American Diabetes Association and the Australian Government.
His group has produced one of the world’s most comprehensive sedentary behaviour programs, spanning accelerometry-based measurement methods, experimental studies showing the benefits of breaking up sitting, and large-scale interventions such as Stand Up Victoria that have influenced workplace policy and occupational health practice.
Professor Dunstan has authored more than 400 peer-reviewed publications and has a Scopus H-index of 98. He was supported by external research fellowships for 16 years and has been a Chief Investigator on 18 nationally-funded studies worth approximately $17 million and 11 international studies from the UK, USA, Sweden and Finland worth more than US$20 million. He was recognised as a Clarivate Highly Cited Research each year from 2018 to 2022, ranking among the top 1% of researchers globally in his field and has been listed as equal first worldwide for sedentary behaviour (expertscape.com) and within the top 2% of scientists worldwide across disciplines (Top SCINET).
Other highlights include:
- Being an invited author on the 2016 Physical Activity/Exercise and Diabetes Position Statement of the American Diabetes Association.
- Invited to present at scientific meetings for the American Diabetes Association and European Society for the Study of Diabetes.
- Current President of the Asia-Pacific Society for Physical Activity (ASPA).
Achievements
- Senior Research Fellowship, National Health and Medical Research Council (2015–2021)
- Recognised as a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher in 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021 — dentifying scientists who have demonstrated significant and broad influence, reflected in the publication of multiple papers frequently cited by their peers during the last decade. In 2021 there were 6602 Highly Cited Researchers named in the top 1% of the world’s population of scientists and social scientists.
- Highly cited epidemiological research reporting that sedentary behaviour is detrimentally associated with premature mortality and cardiometabolic biomarkers has informed new guidelines/position stands of the UK Health Department, the American College of Sports Medicine, the Heart Foundation and the Preventative Health Task Force recommendations on the likely importance of reducing sedentary behaviour.
- National Heart Foundation Vanguard Grants – top ranked grant in Victoria (2014)
- Future Fellowship, Australian Research Council (2011–2014)
- VicHealth Public Health Research Fellow (2006–2010)
- Identification of detrimental associations between sedentary behaviour (including television viewing) and premature mortality (Circulation 2010) and cardiometabolic biomarkers in adults (Diabetes Care 2004); first experimental evidence demonstrating an attenuation in postprandial glucose and insulin levels through the introduction of short activity breaks during prolonged sitting in overweight adults (Diabetes Care 2012).
- Creator of the Lift for Life community-based strength program for Australians with or at risk of developing type 2 diabetes — research to practice initiative providing access to strength training throughout more than 60 facilities across Australia.
- Highly cited epidemiological research reporting that sedentary behaviour is detrimentally associated with premature mortality and cardiometabolic biomarkers has informed new guidelines/position stands of the UK Health Department, the American College of Sports Medicine, the Heart Foundation and the Preventative Health Task Force recommendations on the likely importance of reducing sedentary behaviour.
Awards
- Australian Institute of Policy and Science, Young Tall Poppy Science Award (2007)
