Lorrene Ritchie quoted in UPI and The Washington Newsday articles on how to increase pre-school children’s interest in fruit and vegetables

Lorrene Ritchie, director and UC Cooperative Extension (UCCE) specialist at the Nutrition Policy Institute (NPI), was quoted in an article on November 6, 2020 in UPI titled "Mindfulness-based program boosts preschoolers' interest in fruit, veggies" and another article on November 9, 2020 in The Washington Newsday titled "A program based on mindfulness increases preschool children's interest in fruit and vegetables." The articles highlight a recent study conducted by researchers at Purdue University on a mindfulness-based exercise program to encourage preschool children to make healthier food choices. Dr. Ritchie, who was not involved in the study, is quoted, "Repeated exposure of young children to fruits and vegetables is key to getting them to like them and eat them. It can take up to 20 times – and even more for some children – for a child to learn to like a new food, especially vegetables and other things that aren't sweet, salty or high in fat.”