The name “pica” comes from the Latin word for magpie, a bird known for its large and random appetite. We present one such case report of pica to highlight the importance of a proper diagnosis and treatment. Hence, it is very essential to diagnose and treat such cases properly. The physiological theory to explain pica is that eating clay or dirt helps relieve nausea, control diarrhea, increase salivation, remove toxins and alter odor or taste perception during pregnancy.ĭespite the wide variety of theories, not one of them explains all forms of pica. Yet, the non-food items craved usually do not supply the minerals lacking in the person's body. The nutritional theory suggests that appetite-regulating brain enzymes, altered by an iron or zinc deficiency, trigger specific cravings. The theories supposedly behind it can be a nutritional theory and a physiological theory. However, other sources of lead include certain types of medications, some kinds of pottery and several others. These were built mainly before the 1970s and lead paint was outlawed in 1978. ![]() Lead exposure is a problem for many children that live or visit for extended periods of time in older houses that have lead-based paint in them. Yet another cause can be associated with this disease. The secondary zinc deficiency caused the hepatomegaly and other unusual abnormalities. The soil contained compounds that bound both iron and zinc. Presumably, the children initially had simple iron deficiency associated with pica, including geophagia. These youngsters had other, peculiar abnormalities including massive hepatosplenomegaly, poor wound-healing and a bleeding diathesis. A dramatic example of the problems produced with clay consumption occurred in the 1960s with reports of iron deficiency in children along the border between Iran and Turkey (Say et al., 1969). Both clay and starch can bind iron in the gastrointestinal tract, exacerbating the deficiency. Patients consume unusual items, such as laundry starch, ice and soil clay. The precise pathophysiology of the syndrome is unknown. Pica occurs variably in patients with iron deficiency. The other causes can be iron, zinc or calcium deficiency. In this case, there is likely some cause for it that can be found and eliminated. ![]() When a child that has passed this developmental point and is older, but who suddenly begins to eat non-food items once again, there may be a problem of some kind. They usually go on to something more exciting that catches their attention and forget what they had in their mouths. Unfortunately, some children do not have breakfast at home and they eat paper and other items just because they are hungry and need to survive.ĭevelopmentally, babies - more than elementary school kids - have a period of growth in which they put just about everything they find into their mouths, even their own feet. For children, who learn about the world by putting things into their mouths, pica is really fairly common. The act or habit of eating things that are not food is called pica in medical and psychological textbooks.
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