Pica

Overview :

The puzzling phenomenon of pica has been recognized and described since ancient times. Pica has been observed in ethnic groups worldwide, in both primitive and modernized cultures, in both sexes, and in all age groups. The word pica comes from the Latin name for magpie, a bird known for its unusual and indiscriminate eating habits. In addition to humans, pica has been observed in other animals, including the chimpanzee.

Pica in humans has many different subgroups, defined by the substance that is ingested. Some of the most commonly described types of pica are eating earth, soil or clay (geophagia), ice (pagophagia) and starch (amylophagia). However, pica involving dozens of other substances, including cigarette butts and ashes, hair, paint chips, and paper have also been reported. In one unusual case, the patient ingested transdermal patches of fentanyl, an opioid medication given for severe pain. Eating the skin patch increased the patient's dose of the drug by a factor of 10.

Although pica can occur in individuals of any background, a higher incidence of pica is associated with:

• pregnancy
• developmental delay and mental retardation
• psychiatric disease and autism
• early childhood
• poor nutrition or low blood levels of iron and other minerals
• certain cultural or religious traditions
  
  

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