Pica is disorder in which people crave and eat non-food items or items with no nutritional value, such as dirt, paper or ice. A common symptom of iron deficiency anemia is pica, and specifically, the strong urge to eat ice. For many people, after diagnosis and proper treatment for iron deficiency, the desire to eat ice goes away. Although ice and iron deficiency can go hand-in-hand, an ice craving can also occur for other reasons, and it is not the only symptom associated with low iron levels.

Background

Anemia is a condition where your body does not have enough healthy red blood cells moving through your blood. Without enough iron in your body, red blood cells cannot carry oxygen around efficiently, and the tissues in your body begin to suffer from this decreased oxygen supply. Iron deficiency anemia can occur for several reasons. Most commonly, iron deficiency occurs because of bleeding in the body, such as with excessive menstrual bleeding and bleeding in the digestive tract. It can also occur in people with intestinal conditions such as Crohn’s disease or celiac disease, which might block iron absorption. People lacking enough iron-rich foods can also suffer from a deficiency.

Symptoms

People with mild iron deficiency may not show any symptoms of the condition. If symptoms occur, they can include fatigue, headache and foggy thinking. As anemia worsens, a person may begin to feel lightheaded, pale, short of breath and have a sore tongue. Iron deficiency can also cause brittle nails and a blue coloration of the white portion of a person's eyes. The desire to eat ice can occur with any severity of iron deficiency anemia. Eating ice when you are suffering from iron deficiency anemia may also help ease other symptoms of the condition such as a sore tongue.

Testing

To know if eating ice is related to iron deficiency, doctors perform blood tests. No specific test exists to determine the cause of pica, but testing for mineral deficiencies common to ice cravings including iron and zinc is possible. Blood tests can also help determine any additional signs of malnutrition. If a nutritional deficiency exists, changing your diet and possibly using supplements can help treat the condition, which may also help end your ice cravings.

Dietary Iron Sources

Good sources of dietary iron include foods that come from animals such as beef, eggs and shellfish. Your body absorbs iron from animal sources better than plant sources, which include dried fruit, dark, leafy green vegetables and baked beans. Pairing foods high in vitamin C with plant sources of iron will help increase the absorption of iron. Eat strawberries, which are high in vitamin C, in a spinach salad, which is rich in iron. It may take two months for treatments to correct iron deficiency anemia and relieve the related symptoms.

Other Causes of Pica