Professor Bruce Neal was honoured for his groundbreaking research on potassium-enriched salt, while Associate Professor BJ Newton was recognised for her vital work to restore Aboriginal children from out-of-home care.
Two UNSW Sydney researchers have been recognised at the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Awards.
Professor Bruce Neal from UNSW Medicine & Health and Executive Director of The George Institute for Global Health received the NHMRC Michael Alpers Global Health Award for his research into potassium-enriched salt, which has been shown to lower blood pressure and reduce the risks of stroke, heart disease and early death.
"This award is made out to me, but it really reflects a huge body of work done by a very large team over a long period of time," Prof. Neal said. "If we can make this switch from regular to potassium-enriched salt at scale, it has the potential to prevent literally millions of premature strokes, heart attacks and deaths every year."
Guests at the Research Excellence Awards night were served meals containing potassium-enriched salt, highlighting the significant role of dietary interventions in reducing risk factors for a range of diseases.
The award honours the legacy of the late Emeritus Professor Michael Alpers AO CSM FAA FRS, a pioneer whose decades of work in infectious diseases and with communities in Papua New Guinea exemplified scientific excellence and real-world impact. This new honour recognises excellence in global health research, with recipients selected from the highest-ranked NHMRC grant recipients.
Associate Professor BJ Newton , a proud Wiradjuri woman based at the Social Policy Research Centre at UNSW Arts, Design & Architecture , received the Sandra Eades Investigator Grant Award. Her NHMRC-funded research looks at understanding how systems abuse within child protection affects Aboriginal communities and why these impacts persist.
"Being recognised with this award signifies that Australia is beginning to acknowledge the importance of investigating and exploring systems abuse as a problem and Aboriginal resistance as a strength and protective factor for our communities," A/Prof. Newton said.
The award honours Professor Sandra Eades AO FAHMS FASSA, who made substantial contributions to Aboriginal health research and leadership and was the first Indigenous medical practitioner to be awarded a Doctor of Philosophy.
UNSW Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research & Enterprise Professor Bronwyn Fox congratulated the researchers on their achievement.
"It's pleasing to see our UNSW researchers honoured with these prestigious awards for work that reflects our commitment to enable healthy lives and advance progress for all," Prof. Fox said. "Both Professor Bruce Neal and Associate Professor BJ Newton are undertaking vital research that strengthens the quality, impact and integrity of health and medical research in Australia."
Reuniting Aboriginal children from out-of-home care
A/Prof. Newton specialises in Indigenous research methods, child protection research and policy.
"This research specifically aims to define systems abuse, illustrate its various forms, examine how it is experienced by Aboriginal people in child protection contexts and assess its consequences," A/Prof. Newton said. "Additionally, we aim to document the resistance and resilience shown by Aboriginal communities in countering these harms and to understand how these actions support health, wellbeing and relationships."
Aboriginal children are increasingly overrepresented in out-of-home care and restoration rates remain low. Since the national apology, the number of Aboriginal children in care has more than doubled, underscoring the failure of reforms.
"85% of Aboriginal children who enter out-of-home care are not returned home before aging out," A/Prof. Newton said. "Many age directly into juvenile and correctional systems, moving from one carceral system to another.
"If we're to ensure sustainable restoration for Aboriginal children in out-of-home care, it starts with a shift towards sustaining rather than separating Aboriginal families and leaving behind a costly, ineffective and harmful system that focuses on removal."
The research is community-based and participatory, conducted with Aboriginal community organisations, including AbSec, Mounty Aboriginal Youth and Community Services and South Coast Medical Service Aboriginal Corporation.
Salt swap saves lives
Prof. Neal's research centres on a simple but powerful question - what could be achieved by switching the world's salt supply from regular salt to potassium-enriched salt? Modern diets generally have too much sodium and not enough potassium, leading to elevated blood pressure and increased risks of stroke, heart attack and kidney disease.
Potassium-enriched salt addresses both problems simultaneously by reducing harmful sodium and increasing beneficial potassium intake. The George Institute's landmark NHMRC-funded Salt Substitute and Stroke Study showed that a formulation of 75% sodium chloride and 25% potassium chloride significantly reduced the risks of stroke, major cardiovascular events and premature death.
The scale of the benefit seen in the study could prevent millions of early deaths if salt substitutes were widely adopted. The results also showed there were no harmful effects from the salt substitute.
About the study, Prof. Neal said : "This is quite simply the single most worthwhile piece of research I've ever been involved with.
"Switching table salt to salt substitute is a highly feasible and low-cost opportunity to have a massive global health benefit."
