Pica comes from the Latin word for the "magpie," a bird known for its indiscriminate eating habits. Pica is the persistent eating of any non-nutritive substances including dirt/soil, also known as geophagia.
Individuals who suffer from Pica crave and consume non-food items such as dirt, clay, paint chips, plaster, chalk, cornstarch, laundry starch, baking soda, coffee grounds, cigarette ashes, burnt match heads, cigarette butts and rust.
While it is normal for young children to explore the world by putting things in their mouths, if the compulsion continues beyond the age of two or three, there could be a problem. Pica eating disorder is especially concerning in adolescents and adults.
In many cases, Pica can be harmless; however, it is also considered a serious eating disorder, sometimes resulting in serious health problems such as lead poisoning and iron-deficiency. Other health concerns are intestinal infestations and parasites and the potential for objects to block the intestines, which can lead to medical emergency and even death. PIca is listed in the Psychiatric DSM as an eating disorder.
The current DSM diagnostic criteria for Pica are:
- Persistent eating of nonnutritive substances for a period of at least one month.
- The eating of nonnutritive substances is inappropriate to the developmental level.
- The eating behavior is not part of a culturally sanctioned practice.
- If the eating behavior occurs exclusively during the course of another mental disorder, itis sufficiently severe to warrant independent clinical attention.
Who is at risk for Pica?
Pica is seen more in young children than adults, with 10% of children age one to six years old exhibiting these behaviors. Pica can also occur in mothers during pregnancy. In some cases, specific nutritional deficiencies, such as iron deficiency anemia and zinc deficiency may trigger the unusual cravings. Pica may also occur in adults who crave a certain texture in their mouth.
Other Facts about Pica:
- Perhaps ten or twenty percent of children have Pica at some time before adulthood.
- In some cases, Pica is related not to dietary deficiencies but to folk traditions passed on in families or ethnic groups.
- Some cultures treat clay or dirt eating as a part of daily routine, somewhat like smoking.
- Others cultures believe that eating dirt will help them incorporate magical spirits from the Earth into their bodies.
- There are those that believe that certain kinds of clay will suppress morning sickness when eaten.
- Some children with pica may be imitating a pet dog or cat.
- Stress may be a precipitating factor, especially the stress of dieting when the person tries to relieve hunger and cravings with non-food substances.
- There is evidence to support the hypothesis that at least some pica is a response to dietary deficiency. Pregnant women, for example, have given up pica after they were treated for iron-deficiency anemia.
Common forms of Pica:
- Amylophagia (consumption of starch)
- Coprophagy (consumption of feces)
- Geophagy (consumption of soil, clay, or chalk)
- Hyalophagia (consumption of glass)
- Mucophagia (consumption of mucus)
- Odowa (soft stones eaten by pregnant women)
- Pagophagia (consumption of ice)
- Self-cannibalism (rare condition where body parts may be consumed
- Trichophagia (consumption of hair or wool)
- Urophagia (consumption of urine)
- Xylophagia (consumption of wood or paper)
Prognosis
Treatment success varies. In many cases, the disorder lasts several months, then resolves spontaneously. In some cases, in may continue into adolescence or adulthood, particularly when associated with developmental disorders.
People with pica can often benefit from therapy. Therapy can be especially helpful in addressing the emotional consequences of this eating disorder, in preventing pica from leading to other eating disorders, and in working through any psychological causes that contributed to the onset of the condition. In adults sometimes the use of SSRIs medications and behavior-based therapy (CBT) can be helpful.
For more information on Pica please visit, The Pica Support and Information Forum.
Source materials: Wikipedia, Hope Enterprises, www.acnp.org, eating disorder.com, Psychiatric Times
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