Thought you had strange cravings when you were preggers? Forget pickles and peanut butter, a British mom-to-be found herself addicted to consuming furniture polish and other cleaning products. Believe it or not, this disorder has a name: pica.
26-year-old Emma Veness is totally aware of the harm she's doing to her unborn child by ingesting cleaning products, but she just can't help herself. The cravings apparently began when Veness' pregnancy was only two months in.
Pica -- which is Latin for 'magpie', a bird known to eat virtually anything -- is a condition where the expecting mom craves non-food items, and is said to be caused by mineral deficiencies, particularly iron. Unfortunately pica can cause autism or another developmental disorders in the unborn child.
Veness' pica habit apparently dates back to her own childhood when she drank bubbles during bath time. Her mother and grandmother have also been known (as was my mother-in-law, strangely) to eat coal when they were pregnant.
Initially Veness starting sniffing the polish which eventually led to her "snacking straight from the can" and turning to her sink cupboard to satisfy her bizarre cravings.
She even confessed to preferring certain brands of furniture polish. "It's quite embarrassing; I've tried all different brands, but Asda Smart Price polish is the one that does it for me. The others are too perfumed.”
Little knowledge about pica means little support for people like Veness. "I just wish someone could help me stop, but no one seems to know how to help me or what to do. Most people have never even heard of pica."
She might want to dump her cleaning supplies and think about hiring Molly Maid at least until her baby is born.
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