Craving Ice, an Iron Deficiency?

We all crave that cold, refreshing ice on a hot summer day to relieve the heat, but if you are craving it frequently, there just might be something more it’s telling you. The craving to eat something non-nutritional is called pica, and chewing ice is a symptom of this.

Most often pica is seen in children, but the addiction of chewing ice crosses all age boundaries. Usually this non-nutritional substance craving is related to a nutritional deficiency. Iron deficiency or anemia may be the case in some instances. To fit the addiction to chewing ice, or pagophagia, a person must persist …read more