constantly eating ice -- any DISers do this?

[MomNeedsVacay]

when I was pregnant I used to crave ice

me too...turns out when I'm pregnant I have to take an iron supplement

 

[Erin1700]

when I was pregnant I used to crave ice

me too!!

 

[PatsMom]

I had some pretty severe iron deficiency anemia a few years back and I chewed ice constantly. It was like craving a drug. A few months of intense iron supplements and other meds for stomach issues and the anemia was better and the ice craving went away.

I still tend to get anemic and I know when I start eating ice that I need to take iron supplements.

 

[clovergirl5]

Mom had that craving for ice, dr. told her it was low iron. Starting taking iron supplements and the craving for ice went away. Its weird that someone would crave ice because of something they are deficient in. Why ice?

 

[TLHB70]

I wondered why ice also.
I am so concerned now after reading everything shared here. I definitely want her to have it checked out by a doctor!

The ride from our house to the airport is about 20 minutes. She even brought the cup of ice in the car for the drive to catch their flight and asked us to take it out for her when we got back home. It was bad.

 

[TLHB70]

I don't think you mentioned her age. If she's of menopause age, maybe she feels the ice helps with her hot flashes. I have a friend who gets very anxious and embarrassed about her hot flashes even after quite a few years of them, and she keeps either a cup of ice or a fan handy all the time just in case one comes along.

She is 59.

 

[DisGirlAllie]

I have anemia and I'm constantly eating ice. Not quite to the point of taking a cup of it with me everywhere I go, but all the time at home.

Hope you figure it out soon!

 

[themarquis]

Yup, GF suddenly started drinking very icy water all the time and she turned out to be severely anemic. She'd chill a bottle of water until it as slushy and then chew/drink it all day. I kept telling her it was a sign of anemia and she was pretty defensive, saying "oh, I just like it this way" blah blah.

After getting her iron up, she stopped doing it completely.

An idea for your MIL - if she won't go to the doctor, maybe you can convince her to take an iron supplement. It can't hurt and it will probably help. A multivitamin plus iron or a low dose iron supplement, taken daily along with her regular diet, will most likely regulate her iron after a couple of months. There are also some cereals that have 100 percent iron -- like total. If she has a bowl of that every day it may help as well.

BUT ... she really should get this checked out, esp. if she tries some iron for a while and it doesn't improve things. Not to scare you, but there are many types of anemia, not all of which are "ordinary" iron deficiency. You can get deficient in B12 or have anemia caused by a lot of other things like bone marrow problems. There's also a possibility she's having some bleeding (for example, from her GI tract) that is making her anemic - she should be checked for all of this because it could be serious.

 

[HsvTeacher]

I can tell you that she HATES going to the doctor.
After I complained about it, DH did ask her one time why she always eats ice. She snapped a bit at him and told him that she just likes it. She even said that she craves it. She seemed a bit defensive to me, but I did not say anything.

Thanks so much for all of the information everyone! I feel more confident bringing it up to DH since there are so many personal stories.

I had some pretty severe iron deficiency anemia a few years back and I chewed ice constantly. It was like craving a drug. A few months of intense iron supplements and other meds for stomach issues and the anemia was better and the ice craving went away.

I still tend to get anemic and I know when I start eating ice that I need to take iron supplements.

Okay, I'll admit it...I'm an ice chewer! Like the PPs said, when my iron is low, I crave (!!!!) the ice. The urge to chew it comes and goes, but there have been days when I went through a whole bag of Sonic ice. It drives my DH nuts!

 

[luvmarypoppins]

I started the ice chewing. I didnt go to my dr. either. But I did have a blood test which was somethig he routinely ordered that I finally got done. I ended up in the hospital and had to have an immediate transfusion of 3 units of blood. My blood count was so low like 4.2 they hooked me up to a heart monitor and were afraid I could have a heart attack at any time. I had a colonscopy and endoscopy too to check for internal bleeding and had to take folic acid, B12 shots etc.

 

[Christine]

Why ice? Not sure specifically but the "ice chewing" is related to a condition called Pica, which is where you crave eating clay, dirt, or starch due to iron deficiency. I'm sure that somewhere along the way this craving might actually have helped the body (maybe the body senses that there is iron in certain substances). At any rate, ice chewing is related to Pica.

 

[happygirl]

It funny when I was prego and eating ice. I wasn't anemic. I figured it was just a odd craving lol

 

[kimmar067]

...OP, I feel for you because, although I also hate to bring this up, my mom started a recent habit of licking her lips ALL THE TIME - while she's talking, while she's eating, if she is relaxing (watching TV or solving a Soduko puzzle), just ALL THE TIME. At first, when I noticed it, I had asked her about it and she said that her lips were dry, but it's gone WA-A-A-AY beyond that. She doesn't even realize that she is doing it! Does anyone know if it's just a habit that she now cannot break, or is there some underlying medical issue that she should have checked??

 

[tar heel]

I started eating/craving ice the summer my dad was in the hospital for 15 weeks. I was convinced it was stress and knew it was bad for my teeth, but I couldn't stop. It was like a physical addiction. I'm really bad about going to the doctor and didn't go for like three years. When I went, bloodwork came back that I was severely anemic. I now have the anemia mostly under control although my iron is still on the low side. I can tell when it's starting to get lower b/c I start crunching ice again.

My ice maker in my refrigerator broke a few months ago and I've chosen not to get it fixed.

Your MIL's problem is almost-for-certain anemia. The question is what caused it -- lots of variables there.

 

[sdemore]

Low in iron perhaps?

That is what I was thinking

 

[Christine]

It funny when I was prego and eating ice. I wasn't anemic. I figured it was just a odd craving lol

Actually, you become low on iron for awhile before the anemia hits. It's actually quite normal for your iron to deplete while pregnant. You may not have been anemic but I bet your iron was low.

Of course, I guess you can just crave ice for no real medical reason.

 

[MizTink]

...OP, I feel for you because, although I also hate to bring this up, my mom started a recent habit of licking her lips ALL THE TIME - while she's talking, while she's eating, if she is relaxing (watching TV or solving a Soduko puzzle), just ALL THE TIME. At first, when I noticed it, I had asked her about it and she said that her lips were dry, but it's gone WA-A-A-AY beyond that. She doesn't even realize that she is doing it! Does anyone know if it's just a habit that she now cannot break, or is there some underlying medical issue that she should have checked??

maybe she has an anxiety disorder? it kinda reminds me of cracking knuckles.

 

[Disney Doll]

Chewing ice and a bad stomach?

I'm thinking iron deficient anemia due to internal gastrointestinal bleeding.

Get her to a doctor.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

I used to do that when I was a kid. I would even eat at certain places because they had the crushed ice that you could chew. Even now, when I see snow cone places I'll get one without syrup. I used to just eat ice like it was going out of style. I haven't done that in a long time. I was never shown to be anemic on any bloodwork. Maybe borderline, but not enough that they ever did anything. Although I do have a hard time giving blood. I get turned away at least half the time when they do the finger prick.

 

[Christine]

I used to do that when I was a kid. I would even eat at certain places because they had the crushed ice that you could chew. Even now, when I see snow cone places I'll get one without syrup. I used to just eat ice like it was going out of style. I haven't done that in a long time. I was never shown to be anemic on any bloodwork. Maybe borderline, but not enough that they ever did anything. Although I do have a hard time giving blood. I get turned away at least half the time when they do the finger prick.

I think a lot of people feel this way about the nicely fine, crushed ice. It's good! I love to crunch a snow cone too. And I've also heard that Sonic has GREAT crushed ice that people love to chew. I think that's all a bit different that what is going on here.

Ice chewing due to anemia becomes a compulsion that the person can't stop doing. The girls in my office get whole ice cubes out of a tray, try to crack them up a bit, but then chew on those as best they can. For hours. The ice you get in your house isn't nearly as good as snow-cone ice or Sonic ice. And they have to do it everyday, for hours.