Published by the American Psychiatric Association (APA), the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-5), is a tool that provides mental health professionals, with a common language to communicate more reliable mental health disorder diagnoses between professionals in other fields. The DSM-5 is a teaching tool to aspiring clinicians, and aid in understanding the diagnosis and treatment process of mental health disorders.
The criteria that the DSM-5 list in order to be clinically diagnosed are:
A. Persistent eating of nonnutritive, nonfood substances over a period of at least 1 month.
A. Persistent eating of nonnutritive, nonfood substances over a period of at least 1 month.
- Paper, soap, cloth, hair, string, wool, soil, chalk, talcum powder, paint, gum, metal, pebbles, charcoal or coal, ash, clay, starch, or ice.
- To explore more Pica and the various substances consumed, click here.
B. The eating of nonnutritive, nonfood substances is inappropriate to the developmental level of the individual.
C. The eating behavior is not part of a culturally supported or socially normative practice.
D. If the eating behavior occurs in the context of another mental disorder (e.g., intellectual disability [intellectual developmental disorder], autism spectrum disorder, schizophrenia) or medical condition (including pregnancy), it is sufficiently severe to warrant additional clinical attention.
In remission: After full criteria for pica were previously met, the criteria have not been met for a sustained period of time.
- Substances ingested typically tend to vary with age and availability.
- Pica is developmentally normal for infants to mouth objects, which may accidentally lead to an infant ingesting a nonfood substance. Therefore, a minimum of 2 years is suggested for a pica diagnosis.
C. The eating behavior is not part of a culturally supported or socially normative practice.
- The items listed above are in consideration for the North American culture.
- In some cultures, the eating of nonnutritive organic materials from the earth is believed to be of spiritual, medical, or other social value that is supported in normative practice.
- Cultural norms should be examined when making a diagnosis to exclude these practices from formulating a clinical diagnosis.
D. If the eating behavior occurs in the context of another mental disorder (e.g., intellectual disability [intellectual developmental disorder], autism spectrum disorder, schizophrenia) or medical condition (including pregnancy), it is sufficiently severe to warrant additional clinical attention.
- Pica can be an associative feature of other mental disorders such as: intellectual disorders, autism spectrum disorder, schizophrenia, etc.
- Pica can also occur during pregnancy when specific cravings occur such as: chalk, ice, or soil.
In remission: After full criteria for pica were previously met, the criteria have not been met for a sustained period of time.
