The Pica Eating Disorder

The Pica eating disorder may not be equally common as bulimia, anorexia or compulsive/binge eating, but it will definitely be included in a list of the most important such disorders. The following article will try to explain what the Pica eating disorder is, what its main causes and effects are and how it is usually treated.

The name of “Pica” is thought to come from the Latin translation of “magpie”, which is a bird well known for its ability and pleasure of eating almost anything that it can. The correlation between this bird and the condition is that sufferers will form an appetite for non-foods such as paper, chalk, coal, soil, sponges and so forth, or for unprepared food ingredients such as flour, raw potatoes and the likes.

The causes for the Pica eating disorder are vast and differ greatly from case to case, hence science can only provide some general ideas on this subject. For example, it has been statistically proven that Pica is encountered more often in developing countries and rural settlements than in more civilized environments. The disorder can also be caused by other health problems such as an addiction. Pica sufferers that are smokers and undergo treatment will often search for and chew the cigarette buts that other people throw, for the nicotine they contain.

It is also considered that pregnant women have a higher tendency to be afflicted with the Pica eating disorder, since pregnancy triggers strong cravings for gritty substances like flour, soil and the likes. This fact has not been thoroughly researched however, so this idea remains in theoretical concept.

Another common cause for developing the Pica eating disorder is the lack of certain biochemicals and minerals from the body. A person with such deficiencies will tend to find the lacking biochemicals in the surroundings, through a semi-unconscious process. In most cases however, their abnormal eating habits do not provide the particular elements that they are lacking, moreover they will damage the sufferers body.

The treatment of Pica is often hard to manage, since most of the sufferers have an additional developmental disorder or they are too young for the psychiatrics to have the success they would on an adult. Usually, if a sufferer of Pica fails to respond to normal psychiatric and dietary treatments, the so-called “aversion therapy” is used. This involves associating eating of non-foods (Pica foods) with bad consequences (not too bad, obviously) and normal behavior with good consequences. Although this therapy method will be efficient, if it is performed on a child or on a mentally unstable patient, it may leave deeper wounds in his or her emotional and psychological areas.

Pica, as an eating disorder, can be very dangerous, especially for children. The bacteria and poisonous substances that most Pica non-foods contain can be extremely damaging to their bodies and oftentimes they cannot discern that what they are doing is wrong, so they push themselves through a constant poisoning process which can ultimately be fatal, or may cause severe brain and digestive system damage as well as reduction of the immune system.