Pica

About Pica

Pica is a feeding and eating disorder involving persistent eating of non nutritive, non food substances over a period of at least one month, at a level inappropriate to developmental stage and not part of a culturally supported or socially normal practice. Substances may include paper, soap, cloth, hair, string, chalk, paint, ice, soil or clay, and starch. The name comes from the Latin word for magpie, a bird reputed to eat almost anything. Mouthing objects is normal in infants, so the diagnosis is generally not applied to very young children. Pica is more common in people with intellectual disability and autism, and it can occur during pregnancy. Some forms, including eating ice, known as pagophagia, and eating earth, known as geophagia, have been associated with iron deficiency and other nutritional deficiencies, though whether deficiency causes pica or results from it is not always clear. Complications depend on what is eaten and can include lead poisoning from paint chips, intestinal blockage or perforation, parasitic infections, dental damage and nutritional problems. Assessment usually includes medical evaluation for these complications and for deficiencies such as iron deficiency anemia. Management combines treatment of nutritional deficiencies and medical complications with behavioral interventions, such as environmental changes that limit access, differential reinforcement and teaching alternative behaviors, particularly for people with developmental disabilities.