Pica Watch: “In Africa, they eat the dirt from termite mounds…”

ABC News, in an original report, hypes pica, a medical condition. Using the tactics of calling this disorder a “geophagy”, the report is divided in enticing sections such as “Dirt: The World’s First Mineral Supplement”, “My Dirt Is Better Than Your Dirt” and “Down Home Georgia White Dirt”. How sweet:

It melts in your mouth like chocolate, says Ruth Anne T. Joiner, describing her favorite treat.
“The good stuff is real smooth,” she adds. “It’s just like a piece of candy.”
Joiner is describing the delectable taste of dirt – specifically, clay from the region around her home in Montezuma, Ga.
While most people would recoil at the thought of eating mud or clay, some medical experts say it may be beneficial, especially for pregnant women.
“Every time I get pregnant, I get a craving – I have to eat it,” says Joiner, 40, who has given birth to four healthy babies.
“If I could get just one little bitty piece, that would stop the craving,” she says. “It has a fresh, natural-feeling taste, like the rain or something.”

The report…