Mom2JDS

I haven't dealt with this, personally, but I find it fascinating. Did you know chewing ice is a form of pica? (Pica, btw, is desiring to eat non-edible things.) I've heard of women who would run their fingers along TIRES and lick it... eww!

JDdad

Wow that is strange. Thank you for the definition as i did not know what it was. My wife eats ice all the time, I just thought she liked it better than just water. Long as she doesn't start trying to eat tires I am ok with it!

Momma09

I didn't know chewing ice is a form of pica, but I've heard of women eating some really strange things like laundry detergent and dirt. I just can't imagine having a craving for Tide!

Casey

I've heard of this but, thankfully, have never experienced it. I have a friend who went through it for a while. She was craving baking soda. I also have friends who crave ice. I do know if it is true, but I heard that there is an iron imbalance in the system when people want to eat ice (?).

saferproducts

I have never heard that about eating ice, but I have heard it is just something people with an oral fixation do to occupy themselves. People who give up smoking sometimes will chew ice.

Acuarella

I have to admit that those are some strange cases of pica... The worst one I had during my pregnancy was the craving for paper. I used to abstain myself from chewing the morning newspaper while having breakfast.

Good Lord! I can't imagine wanting to lick dirt from tires...

Zinia

I didn't indulge but I craved chalk and the dirt in my cellar while I was pregnant. I used to go down to the cellar and just smell the dirt and I wanted so bad just to chew it. Gross I know but it just seemed so good to me at the time.

jennyjump

Ice chewing is a sign of anemia. I chewed ice all the time. Once I had IV iron treatments and got my anemia under control I abruptly stopped chewing ice. Just to be clear...chewing an ice cube or two when the weather is hot is not the same as the compulsive urge to constantly chew ice. There is a big difference. I had a compulsive need to chew ice all the time to the point where I carried a cup of ice with me everywhere. That is when it can be a sign of a problem.

Lainey

Thanks for clarifying on the ice chewing. I like to chew ice occasionally but it's not a compulsion for me so I guess it's not a sign of pica.

Pica is a very interesting phenomenon but it must be frustrating to go through.