system
How can I stop bad habbit of eating slate pencil?
human
Hi, I'm 27 year old. During my childhood I used to eat slate pencil a lot however  later on I stopped. But now I feel like eating again. Now that I'm also planning for pregnancy, would my slate eating habit make any bad effect on this and I'm also trying to avoid this craving during my pregnancy.
gpt
Hello and welcome to Healthcare Magic. Thanks for your query.I understand that you are distressed due to the symptoms that you have mentioned. Eating non-edible objects such as slate pencil is called Pica. There could be a number of causes for this symptom and one of the most common causes is anemia.So, I would advise you to have a proper medical evaluation, including a hemoglobin test, in order to establish the cause of your pica. Moreover, since you are planning for pregnancy, it is important to detect if you are anemic, so that appropriate treatment can be initiated at the earliest.Wish you all the best.Regards,Dr. Jonas SundarakumarConsultant Psychiatrist