Craving Earth: Understanding Pica--the Urge to Eat Clay, Starch, Ice, and Chalk Book

List of IllustrationsPrefacePart I: All About Pica 1. What on Earth?The Pica Substances "A devouring passion"Who Does Pica?But Why? 2. A Biocultural Approach: A Holistic Way to Study Pica The Biocultural PerspectivePica Data in This Book3. Medicine You Can Walk OnThe Amazing Properties of ClaysEarly PharmacopeiaModern Medicine 4. Religious Geophagy: Sacredness You Can SwallowChristianityIslamHinduismHoodoo5. Poisons and PathogensAnemiaHeavy Metal PoisoningGeohelminthsOther Physical DamagePart II: But Why? 6. Dismissal and Damnation: A Historical Perspective on the Purported Causes of Pica"The natives"Slaves"The weaker sex"SandlappersChildrenThe Mentally DisturbedConcealment of Pica TodayEstablishing Accurate Estimates of Pica Behavior7. Pica in Response to Food ShortageEarth as a Famine FoodTesting the Hunger Hypothesis8: Pica as a Micronutrient SupplementTesting the Micronutrient Supplement HypothesisCould Pica Cause a Micronutrient Deficiency?9: Pica to Protect and DetoxifyToxins and PathogensThe Protective Capacity of Clays10. Putting the Pica Pieces TogetherWhat We KnowWhat We Don't KnowWhy We Need to Know ItAppendix A: Notable Moments in the History of PicaAppendix B: Prevalence of Pica Among Representative Populations of Pregnant WomenAppendix C: Prevalence of Pica Among Representative Populations of ChildrenAppendix D: Pica in LiteratureAppendix E: Association Between Pica and Iron Deficiency and/or Anemia in Cross-Sectional StudiesAppendix F: Association Between Pica with Zinc Deficiency in Cross-Sectional Studies Appendix G: PredictionsNotesGlossaryWorks CitedAcknowledgmentsIndex

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