Pica: "mud mask for the gut"

"Eating dirt is not just some weird fetish in the South. Hundreds of thousands of people eat dirt around the world. Forrester, an assistant professor of photography at Troy University, says he has spoken with shop owners who receive orders from as far away as London."

Eating dirt has a unique history. For starters, it's not a recent phenomenon. There's evidence that our ancestors were eating dirt at least 2 million years ago, when Homo sapiens were still Homo habilis.

In her book, Craving Earth, Young says eating dirt is one component of a disorder known as pica, in which people compulsively crave things that aren't food, like starch, charcoal and ice.

"Cardiac arrest, threats of divorce, broken dentures, thousands of dollars in dental works — none of this deters people when they have these cravings," says Young. "I've talked to women throughout East Africa and the U.S., and they all talk about this stuff with this incredible fondness and enjoyment."...

Paul Schroeder, a geologist specializing in kaolin at the University of Georgia, says while the habit may have evolved as a protective measure, it may be harmful to our health.

Clay's amazing binding properties could backfire and absorb useful nutrients, which is particularly dangerous for pregnant women, he says.

I recall my stepmother had this condition during a couple of her pregnancies. Her sister's husband, Manuel, was a dirt dump truck hauler. He knew where to find the chalk dirt she craved.