do dc ever grow out of PICA

[shazian]

Hi, my 10yo ds has severe autism, GDD, pica. He doesnt communicate. Pica means he eats anything and everything whether edible or not. Mud, slugs, worms, grass, flowers, his nappy & contents etc. He has had this for as long as i can remember but i assumed as he got older he would grow out of it, unfortunately not! Just the other day i ended up in casualty after he got a hold of screen wash and drank it in the car. I would have been so pleased that he actually got lid off something for first time if it hadnt been so serious. Luckily enough no serious damage done. Next day, got hold of talcum powder and full room was white he was covered head to toe and sitting eating it. In asda he takes things from shelves like sausages etc and eats all including package. Think he has stomach of steel. Saw comm paed on monday and asked her if he would grow out of it, she said some do however some develop it as they get older so im none the wiser. Have any of your dc had pica and now seem to be pica free, lol. :)

Not sure if they grow out of it, i do hope so, dd2 is only 5 but still puts everything in her mouth (given the chance), i have had to check all the plants in my garden are safe (managed to find a plant growing at the bottom of the garden that would have killed her if eaten). Dd2 once ate a packet of baby bels whilst shopping (including the netting and the wax).

I hope they grown out of it 2 marne, its a nightmare isnt it. So glad you found the plant in garden before your dd got to it. My ds screams constant always hitting his stomach seems to be in pain, no wonder. I need eyes on back of my head. Hope your dd grows out of it soon as my ds is 10 and no changes so far. Lucky for me i managed to get my whole garden done in the soft play park stuff (through a charity), otherwise my ds couldnt get out to play. before it was done and i had grass he was eating grass, daisies, slugs, muck etc it was horrendous. Now i can put him in garden with no worries. My ds takes things from peoples shopping trollies and everything even things like flowers and grabs things out of others hand (especially in mcdonalds his favourite, even after 2 meals of his own)

Ds1 (8) is very gradually growing out of it. He used to eat glue, clothes, stones, water from puddles etc his favourite was always daisies as apparently they taste like chocolate! More recently (since getting worms) he tends just to chew things like lego or paper rather than actually swallow them.

I was lucky my dad told me about the plant, i thought it was pretty and asked him what it was 'deadly nightshade' (name gives it away really), i have to watch her constantly when outside as she puts any plant in her mouth (as well as leafs, dirt and stones), i let her have her dummy still when outside as it stops her from eating as much. She's constantly asking for food and if we go out (say to the park for a picnic) she will try and pinch other peoples food. Its hard work, you have to have eyes in the back of your head .

My DD still mouths everything and will eat non-edible items. At only 3.5 though (and severe global delay) I think hers is the developmental stage rather than pica. However I did read a bit about it when desperate after she had eaten an entire painting, and it can be caused by an iron deficiency. As I say, i am no expert and haven't even really proper experience of pica but just raising it as something to maybe look in to if you haven't already.

some dc's grow out of pica some don't, my son has pica and is now 21, he's not as bad as he was in his teenage years but he still has it, I left him in the car while I went to pay for petrol, he stripped the door panel of car and ate the electrics, (window switch and wiring) I couldn't keep up with clothes and bedding, he would eat them along with pillows, matress etc lol