Question:
Eating Ice ?????
Okay,, I am 4 years out...and I have this addiction to chomping on ice pretty much all day long.. is this or could this be a bad thing. It started when I was prego w/ my son but he's 15 months now and I still do it . — aimee A. (posted on July 16, 2008)
July 16, 2008
This is common in pregnant women, it is a form of "pica". Here is
a link with some info. You may want to be checked for iron deficiency.
Worth mentioning to your Dr. as it can be a sign of nutritional deficiency.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pagophagia
— rjh729
July 16, 2008
I too ate ice while I was pregnant and I couldn't get enough of it! I
would wake up and make a glass of ice before I even had my coffee. I
thought the addiction would stop when I had my baby, but it lasted for
nearly another year after my son was born. I had an iron deficiency and
when I had my baby, I had an emergency ceserean (sp?) and lost more than
half my blood supply. So I think that is why my deficiency carried on.
Did you take your vitamins during pregnancy or afterwards? I couldn't even
take Flintstone vitamins as they would make me nausea.
If it's been 15 months, I would definitely talk to your doctor at this
point, you may need a supplement of some sort.
Good luck to you!!!
— Kit08
July 16, 2008
Being in constant need of ice is a possible symptom of iron defficiency.
You should call your doctor and get it checked out ASAP.
— [Deactivated Member]
July 16, 2008
crunching ice is a sign of low iron. you might want to go to your doctor
and have him/her check.
— jan0859
July 16, 2008
You could severely damage your teeth. I have a friend that chipped alot of
her teeth. Didn't realize the extent of the damage until going to the
dentist. Just food 4 thought. Andrea
— dodgerfan
July 16, 2008
An occasional chomp on some ice is one thing, an addiction to it is
another... most likely a form of PICA as a previous author mentioned. Some
people when they are pregnant or going through vitamin/mineral deficiencies
can crave and compulsively eat some strange things like paint chips,
chipping ice off of the walls of their freezer, rocks, pebbles, etc.
I know that sounds strange and you don't have to believe it if you don't
want to. When I was in nursing school and learned about this, I never
thought I would come across it is my lifetime... but I did. My best
friend, who is also a nurse started out eating ice during her pregnancy and
then escalated to eating pebbles in her driveway. Her husband would
literally have to watch her to make sure she didn't to prevent her from
being sick. She was iron deficient and they rectified that and she got
better. Bizzare stuff.
I used to chew on ice because I liked it, until a trip to the dentist
revealed a bunch of chipped teeth and fillings and I ended up having to
have a bunch of costly repairs. It also exacerbates my TMJ.
Get some labs done asap and see what you are lacking and get it taken care
of sooner rather than later.
Good luck to you,
Dawn Vickers, RN, BLC, CLC
— DawnVic
July 16, 2008
I craved ice so much for a long time...My iron was incredibly low. Have you
gotten your blood work latley? Good luck!
— Ambitious
July 17, 2008
Maybe not good for your teeth. Maybe not good for the sanity of people
closeby. There is, however, little against doing this from the bariatric
surgery poimt of view. You should consider the ice to be the same as water
(it melts before it hits your pouch) in terms of not drinking immediately
prior to, during, or after a meal. I like to crunch on ice myself and I
have taken a daily iron supplement for years so, for me, low iron has
nothing to do with it.
— [Deactivated Member]
July 17, 2008
I chomp on ice also. At this time I don't think I am low on iron, but I
have found that it is really hard for me to drink water. It feels like a
rock or giant gas bubble going down into my stomach. So I crunch on soft
ice (for my teeth). It's the same as water. I have also found that even
with the ice, I have to add a little flavor so it doesn't hurt as much.
Good luck, snf be sure to have your iron checked. P Bowers
— paulajaneb
July 17, 2008
I too had this with anemia! I was freezing all the time but still had to
chew on my ice chips...and atomic fireballs (hard cinnamon candies). Iron
Deficiency Anemia is what I had and it showed up at my 4 year Post Op labs!
Get your labs done!
Switch to celery or carrots if you can...Your teeth will thank you!
— .Anita R.
July 17, 2008
I too chewed ice while pregnant. I read that it can be caused by low iron
and that is definitely a possibility for us post WLS so you should probably
have your iron checked.
— Fluffee
July 17, 2008
Compulsive eating of ice or iced drinks is called pagophagia and is a form
of pica. It can be be a sign of iron deficiency but is not always. I
would talk to the doctor and have him do some labwork and also talk to the
dentist about it and make sure you aren't doing permanent damage to your
teeth.
Is it a bad thing? That depends... does it interfere with your life?
If you don't have access to ice, can you still function? Is it all you can
think about... when, where, and how to get more? Are you eating so much
ice that you don't have time/room to eat real foods? Is it causing you
problems at home or work but you aren't able to quit? If the answer to any
of these questions is yes, then I would seriously considering trying to
break the habit.
— mrsidknee
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