Hard News from the Washington Post

Change for the Worse
Tuesday, September 21, 2004; Page HE02


An abdominal X-ray showed a mysterious white bulge in the stomach of a man who appeared at a hospital in France with a swollen belly. After doctors rushed him to surgery, they found the source of the problem: $650 worth of change (inset photo). The stash -- French, British and euro coins -- weighed closed to 12 pounds.

The man had a condition called pica (from the Latin for magpie, a bird known for eating practically anything). People with pica have been known to eat ashes, hair, laundry detergent, chalk, soil, lime, charcoal, dust, paint chips, burnt matches, ice and soap. Metal objects, like coins, are sometimes favored.

In the United States, adult pica persists among some African American women, pregnant women, and women in the South. Some studies estimate the prevalence at 9 to 25 percent among women of childbearing age.

Some specialists think pica may be linked to mineral deficiencies. Others believe it is a cultural practice. It can also be a feature of mental illness. The French patient, a man in his early sixties with a history of mental illness, died of complications 12 days after the operation.