Sera L. Young
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231146098
- eISBN:
- 9780231517898
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231146098.003.0010
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health
This chapter first discusses what we know about pica. Specifically that pica is ubiquitous; pica may be adaptive; pica is not due to hunger; pica is unlikely to contribute micronutrients to the diet; ...
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This chapter first discusses what we know about pica. Specifically that pica is ubiquitous; pica may be adaptive; pica is not due to hunger; pica is unlikely to contribute micronutrients to the diet; pica may cause micronutrient deficiencies; and pica may protect and detoxify. It then considers what remains unknown about pica, including its mechanistic causes, how behavior changes with age, and its evolutionary origins and functional consequences. The final section of the chapter explains the reasons why we need to find answers to the remaining questions about pica. One reason is because pica affects the lives of hundreds of thousands of people each and every day, many of them in the most vulnerable segments of our societies. Knowing the definitive consequences of pica has the potential to affect the lives of many. Another reason to continue the quest to understand pica is because it is a phenomenon at the heart of the complex biocultural being that is us humans; studying pica is a way to study what it means to be us.Less
This chapter first discusses what we know about pica. Specifically that pica is ubiquitous; pica may be adaptive; pica is not due to hunger; pica is unlikely to contribute micronutrients to the diet; pica may cause micronutrient deficiencies; and pica may protect and detoxify. It then considers what remains unknown about pica, including its mechanistic causes, how behavior changes with age, and its evolutionary origins and functional consequences. The final section of the chapter explains the reasons why we need to find answers to the remaining questions about pica. One reason is because pica affects the lives of hundreds of thousands of people each and every day, many of them in the most vulnerable segments of our societies. Knowing the definitive consequences of pica has the potential to affect the lives of many. Another reason to continue the quest to understand pica is because it is a phenomenon at the heart of the complex biocultural being that is us humans; studying pica is a way to study what it means to be us.
Sera L. Young
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231146098
- eISBN:
- 9780231517898
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231146098.003.0002
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health
This chapter outlines the biocultural framework, which is the perspective used to study pica. This framework spans both biology and culture. It encompasses the physical environment in which we have ...
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This chapter outlines the biocultural framework, which is the perspective used to study pica. This framework spans both biology and culture. It encompasses the physical environment in which we have matured as individuals and evolved as a species, and the biological functioning of our bodies. It includes cultural institutions at the macro-level of society (e.g. history, economic opportunities, and power relations), as well as at the micro-level (i.e. household and family dynamics). Ideational beliefs and technological capacity have a place in this framework as well. The chapter then defines the six characteristics examined by biocultural work. Biocultural research focuses on adaptation. It is both holistic and therefore necessarily multidisciplinary. Similar to other life sciences, it distinguishes across levels of analysis, uses the scientific method, and is evidence-based. This is followed by a discussion of the methods used for gathering biocultural data on pica. Two sources referred to at length are the Pica Literature Database and an epidemiological study among pregnant Pemban women.Less
This chapter outlines the biocultural framework, which is the perspective used to study pica. This framework spans both biology and culture. It encompasses the physical environment in which we have matured as individuals and evolved as a species, and the biological functioning of our bodies. It includes cultural institutions at the macro-level of society (e.g. history, economic opportunities, and power relations), as well as at the micro-level (i.e. household and family dynamics). Ideational beliefs and technological capacity have a place in this framework as well. The chapter then defines the six characteristics examined by biocultural work. Biocultural research focuses on adaptation. It is both holistic and therefore necessarily multidisciplinary. Similar to other life sciences, it distinguishes across levels of analysis, uses the scientific method, and is evidence-based. This is followed by a discussion of the methods used for gathering biocultural data on pica. Two sources referred to at length are the Pica Literature Database and an epidemiological study among pregnant Pemban women.
Sera Young
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231146098
- eISBN:
- 9780231517898
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231146098.001.0001
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health
This book provides a portrait of pica, or non-food cravings, from earliest times to current times. It explains how humans have eaten earth, on purpose, for more than 2,300 years and that people also ...
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This book provides a portrait of pica, or non-food cravings, from earliest times to current times. It explains how humans have eaten earth, on purpose, for more than 2,300 years and that people also crave starch, ice, chalk, and other unorthodox items of food. It details how some individuals even claim they are addicted and “go crazy” without these items, and asks “why?” The book draws upon extensive historical, ethnographic, and biomedical findings and describes the substances most frequently consumed and the many methods (including the Internet) used to obtain them. It reveals how pica is remarkably prevalent (it occurs in nearly every human culture and throughout the animal kingdom); identifies its most avid partakers (pregnant women and young children); and describes the potentially healthful and harmful effects of eating it. It evaluates the many hypotheses about the causes of pica, from the fantastical to the scientific, including hunger, nutritional deficiencies, and pica's potential protective capacities. It combines history with intimate case studies to illuminate an enigmatic behaviour deeply entwined with human biology and culture.Less
This book provides a portrait of pica, or non-food cravings, from earliest times to current times. It explains how humans have eaten earth, on purpose, for more than 2,300 years and that people also crave starch, ice, chalk, and other unorthodox items of food. It details how some individuals even claim they are addicted and “go crazy” without these items, and asks “why?” The book draws upon extensive historical, ethnographic, and biomedical findings and describes the substances most frequently consumed and the many methods (including the Internet) used to obtain them. It reveals how pica is remarkably prevalent (it occurs in nearly every human culture and throughout the animal kingdom); identifies its most avid partakers (pregnant women and young children); and describes the potentially healthful and harmful effects of eating it. It evaluates the many hypotheses about the causes of pica, from the fantastical to the scientific, including hunger, nutritional deficiencies, and pica's potential protective capacities. It combines history with intimate case studies to illuminate an enigmatic behaviour deeply entwined with human biology and culture.
Sera L. Young
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231146098
- eISBN:
- 9780231517898
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231146098.003.0001
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health
Pica is the scientific term for the craving and subsequent consumption of non-food items. While earth is the most commonly craved substance, the list of pica substances includes cornstarch, ice (if ...
More
Pica is the scientific term for the craving and subsequent consumption of non-food items. While earth is the most commonly craved substance, the list of pica substances includes cornstarch, ice (if consumed in large quantities), chalk, charcoal, ash, flour, newspaper, toilet paper, used coffee grounds, baby powder, and paint chips. With the exception of ice, all of these substances are dry, powdery, and adsorptive, and most of them are rather crunchy. This chapter begins with a description of pica substances. It then discusses how the craving for pica substances is similar with those for tobacco, alcohol, and drugs; and the segments of the population more likely to engage in pica (pregnant women, children, and animals). Next, the chapter sets out the book's purpose, which is to answer the question of why human and nonhuman animals are eating pica substances given the hassle, the cost, and the pleas not to.Less
Pica is the scientific term for the craving and subsequent consumption of non-food items. While earth is the most commonly craved substance, the list of pica substances includes cornstarch, ice (if consumed in large quantities), chalk, charcoal, ash, flour, newspaper, toilet paper, used coffee grounds, baby powder, and paint chips. With the exception of ice, all of these substances are dry, powdery, and adsorptive, and most of them are rather crunchy. This chapter begins with a description of pica substances. It then discusses how the craving for pica substances is similar with those for tobacco, alcohol, and drugs; and the segments of the population more likely to engage in pica (pregnant women, children, and animals). Next, the chapter sets out the book's purpose, which is to answer the question of why human and nonhuman animals are eating pica substances given the hassle, the cost, and the pleas not to.
Sera L. Young
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231146098
- eISBN:
- 9780231517898
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231146098.003.0003
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health
This chapter describes the many ways that pica substances have been used to heal a range of ailments. It begins by discussing some of the physical and chemical features of clay. It then describes ...
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This chapter describes the many ways that pica substances have been used to heal a range of ailments. It begins by discussing some of the physical and chemical features of clay. It then describes clay known as terra sigillata, which was valued by the ancient Greeks and Romans for its healing properties. Pliny, for instance, wrote about how terra sigillata could be used as an antidote to swallowed poisons and snakebites, as a treatment for dysentery, and to reduce inflammation around the eyes. The remainder of the chapter covers the history of clay in Chinese pharmacopeia and how but earth continues to be used by modern medicine as effective treatments for diarrhoea and wound healing.Less
This chapter describes the many ways that pica substances have been used to heal a range of ailments. It begins by discussing some of the physical and chemical features of clay. It then describes clay known as terra sigillata, which was valued by the ancient Greeks and Romans for its healing properties. Pliny, for instance, wrote about how terra sigillata could be used as an antidote to swallowed poisons and snakebites, as a treatment for dysentery, and to reduce inflammation around the eyes. The remainder of the chapter covers the history of clay in Chinese pharmacopeia and how but earth continues to be used by modern medicine as effective treatments for diarrhoea and wound healing.
Sera L. Young
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231146098
- eISBN:
- 9780231517898
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231146098.003.0004
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health
There are a number of places in which earth is ingested or topically applied because of its purported religious properties. This chapter presents stories of modern-day religious geophagy from around ...
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There are a number of places in which earth is ingested or topically applied because of its purported religious properties. This chapter presents stories of modern-day religious geophagy from around the world, in Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and hoodoo folk magic. Although it may at first seem tangential to the main storyline, since religiously prescribed geophagy is not pica, the healing properties frequently ascribed to earth allude to the potential curative powers of geophagy. They also help shift geophagic earth away from its lingering “dirty” connotations; in many of the examples in this chapter, earth is considered pure and holy.Less
There are a number of places in which earth is ingested or topically applied because of its purported religious properties. This chapter presents stories of modern-day religious geophagy from around the world, in Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, and hoodoo folk magic. Although it may at first seem tangential to the main storyline, since religiously prescribed geophagy is not pica, the healing properties frequently ascribed to earth allude to the potential curative powers of geophagy. They also help shift geophagic earth away from its lingering “dirty” connotations; in many of the examples in this chapter, earth is considered pure and holy.
Sera L. Young
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231146098
- eISBN:
- 9780231517898
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231146098.003.0005
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health
This chapter returns to what is clearly demarcated pica behavior, the purposive ingestion of craved non-food substances, and explores its purported negative consequences from a much more biomedical ...
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This chapter returns to what is clearly demarcated pica behavior, the purposive ingestion of craved non-food substances, and explores its purported negative consequences from a much more biomedical point of view. Pica is strongly associated with anemia, and sometimes associated with heavy metal poisoning and non-hookworm geohelminth infections. It can also seriously damage most parts of the alimentary canal, from teeth to anus. For these reasons, pica has been considered a pathological behavior by most medical professionals. However, pica substances are also associated with medicines, health, and healing. Thus, it is clear that pica is associated with both positive and negative conditions.Less
This chapter returns to what is clearly demarcated pica behavior, the purposive ingestion of craved non-food substances, and explores its purported negative consequences from a much more biomedical point of view. Pica is strongly associated with anemia, and sometimes associated with heavy metal poisoning and non-hookworm geohelminth infections. It can also seriously damage most parts of the alimentary canal, from teeth to anus. For these reasons, pica has been considered a pathological behavior by most medical professionals. However, pica substances are also associated with medicines, health, and healing. Thus, it is clear that pica is associated with both positive and negative conditions.
Sera L. Young
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231146098
- eISBN:
- 9780231517898
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231146098.003.0006
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health
This chapter deals with how, for centuries, pica has been considered to be a behavior that is at best useless, and at worst injurious. It presents six groups of people who have historically been ...
More
This chapter deals with how, for centuries, pica has been considered to be a behavior that is at best useless, and at worst injurious. It presents six groups of people who have historically been described as engaging in pica—indigenous populations, slaves, pregnant women, poor whites in the southeastern United States, children, and the mentally ill—and discusses the flawed rationale behind the condemnation for each group. Information about the frequency, duration, and severity with which pica has been condemned makes it possible to surmise why pica has been so readily dismissed until the twentieth century. The chapter concludes by recounting more recent judgmental reactions to pica, which leads to a discussion of other reasons why pica may be concealed as well as suggestions for establishing a more accurate estimate of pica behavior.Less
This chapter deals with how, for centuries, pica has been considered to be a behavior that is at best useless, and at worst injurious. It presents six groups of people who have historically been described as engaging in pica—indigenous populations, slaves, pregnant women, poor whites in the southeastern United States, children, and the mentally ill—and discusses the flawed rationale behind the condemnation for each group. Information about the frequency, duration, and severity with which pica has been condemned makes it possible to surmise why pica has been so readily dismissed until the twentieth century. The chapter concludes by recounting more recent judgmental reactions to pica, which leads to a discussion of other reasons why pica may be concealed as well as suggestions for establishing a more accurate estimate of pica behavior.
Sera L. Young
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231146098
- eISBN:
- 9780231517898
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231146098.003.0007
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health
This chapter first presents examples of earth consumed during famines. It then examines the first of the two nutritional explanations of pica—that pica is a response to hunger. It considers four ...
More
This chapter first presents examples of earth consumed during famines. It then examines the first of the two nutritional explanations of pica—that pica is a response to hunger. It considers four predictions stemming from the hypothesis that hunger is a response to food shortage: people eating non-food substances have little other food to eat; people would feel less hungry after eating pica substances; pica substances would not be desired when “typical” food was available; and almost any non-food item would be eaten by the consumer. It concludes that there is little to substantiate this hypothesis. Although consumers may feel more full after engaging in pica (consistent with the second prediction), they frequently have other food to eat (contradictory to the first prediction); pica cravings occur when typical food is available (contradictory to the third prediction); and pica substances are extremely carefully selected (contradictory to the last prediction). While hunger has motivated a small fraction of non-food consumption around the world, it is safe to say that it does not explain the bulk of pica.Less
This chapter first presents examples of earth consumed during famines. It then examines the first of the two nutritional explanations of pica—that pica is a response to hunger. It considers four predictions stemming from the hypothesis that hunger is a response to food shortage: people eating non-food substances have little other food to eat; people would feel less hungry after eating pica substances; pica substances would not be desired when “typical” food was available; and almost any non-food item would be eaten by the consumer. It concludes that there is little to substantiate this hypothesis. Although consumers may feel more full after engaging in pica (consistent with the second prediction), they frequently have other food to eat (contradictory to the first prediction); pica cravings occur when typical food is available (contradictory to the third prediction); and pica substances are extremely carefully selected (contradictory to the last prediction). While hunger has motivated a small fraction of non-food consumption around the world, it is safe to say that it does not explain the bulk of pica.
Sera L. Young
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231146098
- eISBN:
- 9780231517898
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231146098.003.0008
- Subject:
- Public Health and Epidemiology, Public Health
This chapter continues the discussion began in Chapter 7 and explores the possibility that a micronutrient deficiency motivates pica. It examines predictions that can be made from this hypothesis: ...
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This chapter continues the discussion began in Chapter 7 and explores the possibility that a micronutrient deficiency motivates pica. It examines predictions that can be made from this hypothesis: pica would be associated with a micronutrient deficiency; pica would be associated with populations with the highest micronutrient requirements; elimination of the deficiency would cause pica to cease; and pica substances would provide micronutrients in which the consumer is deficient. It concludes that existing data do not lend much support to the supplementation hypothesis. In fact, the opposite of supplementation may be happening; pica substances may be causing micronutrient deficiencies. Experimental evidence supports the idea that some pica substances interfere with the absorption of micronutrients and can thus contribute to deficiencies.Less
This chapter continues the discussion began in Chapter 7 and explores the possibility that a micronutrient deficiency motivates pica. It examines predictions that can be made from this hypothesis: pica would be associated with a micronutrient deficiency; pica would be associated with populations with the highest micronutrient requirements; elimination of the deficiency would cause pica to cease; and pica substances would provide micronutrients in which the consumer is deficient. It concludes that existing data do not lend much support to the supplementation hypothesis. In fact, the opposite of supplementation may be happening; pica substances may be causing micronutrient deficiencies. Experimental evidence supports the idea that some pica substances interfere with the absorption of micronutrients and can thus contribute to deficiencies.
