Many people are afflicted by syndromes that are foreign to the majority of the population. The vast majority of these are characterized as eating disorders, which usually lead to health problems for the personsuch as pica syndrome. Join us on Supercurioso to learn more about one of the rarest disorders that exist.
What is Pica syndrome or Allotriphagia?
Pica syndrome or Alotriophagia is an eating disorder. The patient has an irresistible desire to eating or licking a series of substances that are not edible for humans, nor do they initially provide any kind of nutrients to the body.
Among the most common things that those affected by Pica put in their mouths are: plaster, dirt, chalk, paint chips, ash, mold, starch..., and among the most curious: cigarette butts, condoms, detergent or paper.
The name “Pica” comes from Latin. In this language “Pica” is the name given to the magpies, which have the habit of ingesting substances that are not edible, in addition to stealing.
Apparently, this syndrome does not imply that other foods are rejected, but that inedible things are ingested. Pica does not yet have a known cause, but in many of the cases studied there seems to be a lack of some element that the body needs, such as iron or zinc. By providing the patient with this element, allotriphagia has been significantly reduced.
Causes of allotriphagia syndrome
Until now, there is not one or several defined causes that cause this type of nutritional alteration. Nevertheless, if it is attributed to several factors in particular, but that do not have any type of relationship between them. That means that there are different types of risks for each person who suffers from this rare syndrome for various reasons, such as:
- physical: refers to nutritional deficiencies, present more than anything in pregnant women. It is suspected that it may be caused by the animal instinct that leads us to consume plaster to fill the calcium gaps during pregnancy.
- Cultural: They also have to do with the lack of food, since the pica syndrome has a greater presence in low-income regions. Central and South America, along with India, are the main areas with the highest cases.
- psychological and mental: In this case, the reasons are a long list of options. In that sense, it can occur in people who suffer from constant stress, low self-esteem, childhood trauma or other behavioral disorders.
Those who have suffered some type of brain damage, suffer from epilepsy or some dementia or psychosis also enter. It is even more common in children who have autism.
Pica syndrome: symptoms and appearance
Until the 18/24 months, it is not strange that child suffer from allotriphagia and they put it all in their mouths. From 24 months it is already considered unusual, although up to 6 years it occurs relatively frequently. In older children and adolescents, cases occur if there is a family history, malnutrition, they are or have been victims of famine or they have some type of mental retardation or disorder.
Another group that can suffer from allotriphagia is that of pregnant women. It is believed that between 23% and 44% of pregnant women suffer to a greater or lesser degree Pica syndrome. It usually occurs normally between the first and second trimesters of pregnancy and the compulsive eating seems to be due to the lack of calcium during pregnancy, since they usually eat chalk, plaster or powder of these materials. However, this behavior, not because it is relatively common, is positive, since it can cause problems during pregnancy.
Depending on what those affected eat, it receives a different name: If they eat ice, it is called “pagophagy”, earth “geophagia”, starch “amylophagia”, excrement “coprophagia”, paper “foliophagia”, stones “lithophagia”, etc. Animals also suffer from allotriphagiaalthough in his case it has been proven that it is always due to the need for a certain mineral that is missing in his diet, the need to calm digestive problems or also as a detoxifier.
Pica syndrome: treatment
When you suffer from allotriphagia syndrome risk of serious health complications, poisoning being one of the most common. For this reason, the presence of a medical professional who supervises the treatment of this strange eating disorder is necessary. In addition, he must be accompanied by a psychologist or psychiatrist who is an expert in such matters.
For the treatment of this type of alteration, Various methods are used that will be left to the discretion of the health professional. In that sense, it will depend on the root of the problem, which can be due to physical, cultural or psychological problems.
Treatments range from the implementation of nutritional supplements, to medication to control stress, depression or to regulate cravings. Among all this, psychological counseling and the corresponding behavioral or behavior therapy should not be missing.
Complications related to allotriphagia syndrome
This problem usually appears during childhood. Although it usually lasts a few months, it is important that during this period of time there is supervision and extreme care for the child. All, in order to avoid some complications, such as:
- Poisoning due to ingestion of toxic substanceswhich can even affect the brain and cause death.
- Constipation or obstruction of the digestive system by the consumption of elements that cannot be digested.
- Internal wounds and injuries in the body such as in the mouth or stomach.
- Infections derived from parasites and bacteria that are housed in substances not suitable for consumption, which can lead to damage to the liver and kidneys.
- Difficulty continuing treatment of pica syndrome due to problems derived from other psychological disorders.
Just as pica syndrome can be very strange, there are other disorders and conditions that turn out to be just as or more curious. For this reason, we leave you with a selection of the syndromes that we have shared in Supercurioso so that you can learn much more about them.
Have you ever seen someone eat something inedible? Or worse, has it happened to you? You may suffer from pica syndrome. Just like this, there are many eating disorders where it is recommended that they be treated by health professionals. This article serves as a guide, but not as a diagnosis or treatment. We invite you to leave us your opinions about this pathology in the comments.