Pica Syndrome

Medically Reviewed by The Medindia Medical Review Team on Apr 03, 2015

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Other Names :

Pica disorder

What is Pica Syndrome ?

Pica disorder refers to appetite for eating non-edible and non-nutritive substances such as chalk, paint, sand, etc. This appetite persisting more than one month at the age where eating such objects is considered to be developmentally inappropriate.

Cause(s) :

Mineral deficiency (deficiency of iron, calcium etc)
Chemical imbalance
Parasitosis
Celiac disease
Hookworm infection

Symptoms :

Diagnosis and Tests : No single test to confirm Pica syndrome. DSM criteria includes:

Persistent eating of non-nutritive substances for a period of at least one month
In the absence of autism, schizophrenia or Kleine-Levin syndrome
Culturally not sanctioned
Such eating behaviour existing in severe form in association with other conditions such as intellectual disability, pervasive developmental disorder, etc, that it requires a separate clinical intervention.

Specialist to consult : Psychiatry