Allotriophagy
(an abnormal desire to eat "unnatural" things for food)
The Persistent Eating of Non-nutritive Substances
Eating Disorders or Eating Non-nutritive Substances, or Nonfood Items.
Pica is an eating disorder typically defined as the persistent eating of non-nutritive substances for a period of at least one month at an age in which this behavior is developmentally inappropriate; for example, 18-24 months. The definition occasionally is broadened to include the mouthing of non-nutritive substances.
Individuals involved with pica have been reported to mouth and/or ingest a wide variety of nonfood substances, including, but not limited to, clay, dirt, sand, stones, pebbles, hair, feces, lead, laundry starch, vinyl gloves, plastic, pencil erasers, ice, fingernails, paper, paint chips, coal, chalk, wood, plaster, light bulbs, needles, string, cigarette butts, wire, and burnt matches.
