Pica Research Paper

The word Pica is from a Latin word called Magpie. Magpie is a bird known for its large and indiscriminate appetite. Between 10% and 30% of kids’ ages one to six years old have pica, which is an eating disorder that can result in Lead Poisoning and Iron-Deficiency Anemia. Pica is compulsive eating disorder that causes health problems from eating non-food items. Pica is defined as a compulsive eating of substances that are not commonly considered to be food (Kamal, Ihab, John Thompson, and Dana M. Paquette). It is also known as a craving, that last a month or longer, of eating non-food items (“Pica”). Craved items vary depending on age (“What is Pica”). Most recent ages that Pica is usually found between the ages of twenty-six to forty-six, however children are
Pica can only be diagnosed by a doctor based on the history and various other factors. Certain conditions can increase a person’s risk of getting this eating disorder. Some signs of a child who might have Pica include repetitive consumption of non-food items, despite efforts to restrict it, for a period of at least one month, the behavior is considered inappropriate for the child’s age or developmental stages, older then eighteen to twenty-four months old. Risks that may result in having pica are nutritional deficiencies, dieting, malnutrition, cultural factors, parental neglect, lack of supervision, food deprivation, developmental problems, mental health conditions, pregnancy (“Pica”).
There was a twenty-six year old man who had several foreign objects removed from the esophagus, a grass bezoar and a large poker chip in his body. Also, there was a thirty year old man who ingested a latex glove, and there was a non-verbal mentally retarded forty-six year old woman how had a history of pica and had a four day period of frequent vomiting (Kamal, Ihab, John Thompson, and Dana M.