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What Causes The Child To Eat Papers, Crayons And Erasers?
My 6 year old has been eating paper and erasers off of pencils (at home). His teacher recently commented that he was eating crayons and pencils at school. From what I ve gathered this May be Pica. My question is should I start him on daily vitamins or set up a doctors appointment? Also, could this be a result of family issues or disorganized family structure? (I recently read this too but the source was not cited so unknown if reliable). We have had the paper issue come up before but the crayons and pencils are new.
posted on
Tue, 9 Sep 2014
Medically reviewed by
Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team
Wed, 22 Oct 2014
Answered on
Wed, 22 Oct 2014
Last reviewed on
Hi...you are right. This could be pica. But instead of multivitamins I suggest you use iron supplements. As this is a prescription medicine in many countries you need to consult your pediatrician.
This could also be because of family issues... But you can try iron supplements first.
Regards - Dr. Sumanth
This could also be because of family issues... But you can try iron supplements first.
Regards - Dr. Sumanth
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