# Unusual craving

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unusual-craving/301792>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [April 29, 2005, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unusual-craving/301792 "2005-04-29T21:44:15Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![sicklove](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@sicklove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sicklove)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unusual-craving/301792/1 "2005-04-29T21:44:15Z")

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Is there a disease that causes you to crave cushion foam? If so, what is it?

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**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unusual-craving/301792/2 "2005-04-29T21:54:00Z")

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I believe the craving for any non-food item is known as **[pica](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pica_%28disorder%29)**. My cat has pica, she’s a “wool sucking cat” and I have to watch her very carefully and dispose of things like Q-tips as if they were needles in a house with curious dangerprone toddlers.

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**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unusual-craving/301792/3 "2005-04-29T21:55:32Z")

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Adding, though IANAD, I believe pica is treated as though it were a form of OCD now.

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**Author:** ![Silver\_Fire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Silver\_Fire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Fire)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unusual-craving/301792/4 "2005-04-29T21:55:52Z")

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[Pica](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a5_090.html), as explained by Cecil Adams.

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**Author:** ![Ol\_Gaffer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Ol\_Gaffer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ol_Gaffer)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unusual-craving/301792/5 "2005-04-29T22:35:45Z")

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Considering your username, I have to wonder what form this “craving” takes?

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**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unusual-craving/301792/6 "2005-04-29T22:55:45Z")

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> [@Silver Fire](#):
>
> [Pica](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a5_090.html), as explained by Cecil Adams.

I find the perfect master’s take on Pica to be a little _dissapointing_ He never explains why the craving got named after an [old style typewriter](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&c2coff=1&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&q=pica+typewriter&btnG=Search). Why _is_ it called pica?

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**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2005, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/unusual-craving/301792/7 "2005-04-29T23:16:00Z")

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**Squink**  
According to [www.dictionary.com](http://www.dictionary.com) the reason is:

[New Latin pca, from Latin, magpie (from its omnivorous nature).]