Why Do People Eat Dirt
Intentionally eating dirt also called geophagy is a natural instinct and may serve a greater health purpose.
Why do people eat dirt. Amid the countless edible plants and. Commonly it is a traditional cultural activity that takes place during pregnancy religious ceremonies or as a remedy for diseases. Even in the Yazoo-Mississippi Delta Negroes and whites send requests to their upcountry friends for a bit of red clay declaring that black Delta soil is right bad eating In.
The habit of eating clay mud or dirt is known as geophagy. After all a number of anti-diarrheal treatments have kaolin in them. Eating dirt can even become an addiction an impulsive act hidden from others.
Many people in the south eat sour dirt or clay dirt. The dirt is dug from deep enough in the ground that it should not be contaminated. This is why it it does not harm us.
Another reason people eat dirt is because of a disorder called pica. Pica-related behaviors should be addressed immediately because of the risk of complications that can occur. I eat it every day and have done so for the past 11 years.
Tonight two co-workers both women were discussing a practice thats apparently quite common in Southern black culture. The inhabitants of the east African island of Pemba rejoice when one of the young women there starts eating earth -- this unusual food supplement can only mean one thing. Keep in mind that it is a physical action that kills insects not a chemical action.
Most people who eat dirt live in. Published on 672011 at 212 PM. When ingested clay lines the stomach it hinders access to the body by bacteria and viruses and also facilitates nutrient absorption.