Abstract
Pica, the deliberate ingestion of non-food substances, has been described in different antenatal populations in some parts of the world. Although the aetiology remains unclear, pica has been associated with complications such as anaemia in pregnancy. Little is known regarding the existence of this phenomenon in a high-risk antenatal population such as women with diabetes in pregnancy. In this service review survey of 56 consecutive pregnant women attending our joint antenatal diabetes clinic, the practice of pica was found in 23% of the women. The commonest variant of pica in this group was pagophagy (ice) followed by amylophagy (uncooked starch). Other ingested items in this group were sand, paper, gloss paint and sponge. There is a need for increased awareness amongst antenatal health professionals regarding the existence of the phenomenon of pica. This would allow appropriate nutritional advice to be offered. Further work is required to determine the impact of the different variants of pica on glycaemic control and other important pregnancy outcomes in diabetic patients.
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