Eating Ice Cubes: What’s Behind It and What You Can Do About It

Eating ice cubes doesn’t sound morbid at first and there’s nothing morbid about it if you enjoy sucking something cool every now and then. However, in this health tip you can find out what is behind it if it is a disorder and what you can do about it.

Eating ice cubes – an eating disorder

There is an eating disorder called pica syndrome .

• What is meant by this is that those affected eat things that are not actually intended for consumption.
• This can be sand, for example, as well as hair, earth, wood – or even ice cubes.
• First of all: If you suck an ice cube from time to time, for example to cool off, this has no disease value.
• However, if you are quasi addicted to it and show the symptom for at least a month, the eating disorder mentioned is probably behind it.
• Pica syndrome is divided into different subgroups depending on the substance that is ingested. Eating ice cream is called pagophagy.

Pagophagia – causes and treatment

In adults, pica syndrome usually occurs in connection with a serious mental illness.

• This could be schizophrenia, for example. Eating disorders can also be caused by dementia.
• If the eating disorder occurs in childhood, reduced intelligence, but also a problematic environment, such as a broken family or a toxic relationship in the child’s social environment, can be responsible.
• In addition, a nutrient deficiency, especially an iron deficiency, can cause the eating disorder. You can recognize this by the fact that a person is constantly yawning .
• Treatment depends on the cause of the eating disorder. Behavioral therapy can be useful.
• However, if a nutrient deficiency has been identified as the background to the eating disorder, a change in diet in combination with dietary supplements is sufficient.