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- animal disease
- disease
- On the Web:
- National Center for Biotechnology Information - Pica (Oct. 23, 2026)
pica
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What is pica?
Pica is a mental health condition and eating disorder involving the persistent craving and consumption of non-nutritive substances, such as ice, soil, chalk, or hair. Though often temporary and benign, pica can be dangerous if the ingested items are hazardous.
Pica can affect individuals of any age, but it is more common among young children, pregnant individuals, those with developmental disabilities, and those with mental health conditions like autism or schizophrenia. Nutritional deficiencies, such as iron deficiency anemia, and psychological factors, including stress, anxiety, abuse, or neglect, have been associated with pica, though direct causes are not well-established.
Pica is typically diagnosed based on reported symptoms and a history of eating nonfood items. Diagnosis may also involve tests for infections, poisoning, and intestinal damage. Treatment includes counseling and therapies focused on nutrition and healthy eating habits.
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What kinds of non-food items do people with pica eat?
People with pica commonly ingest nonfood items such as ice (pagophagia), soil or clay (geophagia), chalk, and charcoal. Other items include paint chips, human or animal feces, hair (trichophagia), coffee grounds, eggshells, raw starch (amylophagia), paper, pebbles, soap, and cloth.
The dangers of pica depend on the objects consumed. For example, soil, clay, and feces may harbor parasites and harmful bacteria, while paint chips may contain poisonous lead. Hair may cause choking or blockages if it becomes lodged in the throat, stomach, or intestines.
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Who is most likely to develop pica?
Pica is most likely to develop in children under six years of age, pregnant people, and persons with developmental disabilities. It also occurs in people with certain other mental health conditions, including autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia.
Pica is characterized by compulsively eating nonfood substances with little or no nutritional value. Items commonly eaten by people with pica include ice, soil, clay, chalk, and paint chips. The condition can be short-term or lifelong, and it can be dangerous if hazardous items are ingested.
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What are possible health risks caused by eating non-food items?
Pica is an eating disorder involving the persistent craving and consumption of non-nutritive substances, such as soil, paint chips, or hair. The health risks of pica vary depending on the substance ingested.
Consuming soil, clay, or feces can introduce parasites and harmful bacteria. Paint chips may contain lead, a toxic substance, while hair can cause choking or blockages in the digestive system. Sharp objects can also cause damage to the digestive tract.
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How do doctors diagnose pica?
Doctors diagnose pica through observation and testing, as there are no specific lab tests for pica itself. Diagnosis often occurs when individuals report their symptoms or when physical signs, like damaged teeth, become apparent.
The diagnostic process may involve blood tests to identify infections, poisoning, or electrolyte imbalances. Imaging techniques such as X-rays, ultrasound, or MRI can help detect digestive system damage or blockages. Counseling and a focus on a healthy diet are also key components of treatment.
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What treatments are available to help someone with pica?
Pica is characterized by the persistent craving and consumption of non-nutritive substances. While the exact causes of pica aren't clear, it can be associated with mineral deficiencies or other mental health conditions.
Although there are no specific lab tests for pica, diagnosis may occur after symptoms appear or after a person informs a physician. Treatment includes counseling and an emphasis on healthy eating, which may help alleviate symptoms or resolve the condition. For pregnant individuals, pica typically ceases after childbirth; for children, it often diminishes as they age.
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pica, mental health condition, a type of eating disorder, characterized by the compulsive eating of substances that are not food and that have little or no nutritional value. For many people with the condition, pica is short-term and benign, but for some people it is a lifelong condition, and it can be dangerous if hazardous items are ingested. It occurs in people of all ages from 24 months on but may be more prevalent in children under six years of age, pregnant people, persons with developmental disabilities, and people with certain other mental health conditions, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and schizophrenia. The disorder is named after the Eurasian magpie (Pica pica), a bird species that sometimes eats nonfood items.
The nonfood items most commonly eaten by people who have pica include ice (known as pagophagia), soil or clay (known as geophagia), chalk, charcoal, paint chips, human or animal feces, hair (known as trichophagia), coffee grounds, eggshells, raw starch (known as amylophagia), paper, pebbles, soap, and cloth. In some cultures, geophagia—especially eating clay—as a medicinal practice is culturally supported and socially normative. Others who live with poverty and famine may engage in geophagia to ease hunger pangs and to provide needed micronutrients, such as iron or calcium.
Causes and risk factors
Scientists and physicians are not exactly sure what causes pica. Some people with the disorder have nutritional deficiencies, such as iron deficiency anemia, but, besides such deficiencies, direct causes of the disorder have yet to be established. Pica studies have used different definitions of the disorder, and underreporting is common among affected subjects, making it difficult to draw scientifically accurate conclusions. Some studies have found associations with psychological factors such as stress, anxiety, and child neglect or abuse.
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The dangers of pica depend on the types of objects people consume. Ice, for example, is usually harmless, but excessively chewing it can damage teeth. Soil, clay, and feces may contain parasites and harmful bacteria. Paint chips may contain lead, which is a poisonous substance. Hair may become lodged in a person’s throat, stomach, or intestines, causing choking or blockages. Sharp objects may damage the digestive system.
Treatment and care
For those diagnosed with pica during pregnancy, the condition usually ceases after giving birth. For children with the diagnosis, the condition usually eases as they grow older. For others, however, the consumption of nonfood items may be lifelong and difficult to control. In addition, it may occur in tandem with other disorders, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), schizophrenia, or trichotillomania (a compulsion to pull out one’s own hair).
There are no lab tests for pica itself, so diagnosis may occur only after symptoms, such as damaged teeth, appear or after people inform a physician about it. However, many people who have pica feel embarrassed by or ashamed of their condition, so they may not inform a physician when they have symptoms. Diagnosis of the disorder may involve running tests to detect infections, poisoning, or electrolyte imbalances or using imaging techniques, such as X-rays, ultrasound, or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), to look for signs of blockages or damage in the digestive system. Counseling and treatment emphasizing a healthy diet may ease pica symptoms or cause the condition to cease.