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Woman addicted to cat food eats 900 kitty treats a day


Be it alcohol, cigarettes, or even food, many of us struggle with addiction. But now, one Michigan woman is revealing that she has an addiction that may be entirely unique -- she can't get enough cat treats.

The Farwell, Michigan woman identifies herself only as "Mary", and appeared on the television program My Strange Addiction to talk about her addiction to eating cat treats. She says she is so addicted that she will sometimes consume as many as 900 a day, and has eaten an estimated million cat treats since her addiction began.

The 46-year-old woman says that after her marriage fell apart five years ago, she began spending all of her time alone in the house with her three cats. One day she was tempted to try one of their kitty treats, and the taste test quickly developed into a full blown addiction.

"One for you and one for momma," says Mary on a promotional video for the show, popping a treat in her mouth and giving one to her cat.

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Though she is unemployed, Mary says she spends about $200 a month on cat treats for herself, which is more than what she spends on regular "people" food.

This is obviously unusual behaviour, but addiction to eating items and objects that are not human food is not unheard of, and in fact, there's actually a name for this condition: Pica.

Most common in women and children, Pica is an eating disorder that is characterized by consuming non-nutritional substances like clay, dirt, chalk and feces. Hospitalizations for Pica jumped by 93 per cent in the United States over the past decade, according to the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project.

And it's not just dirt. There is geomelophagia (addiction to eating raw potatoes), hylaphagia (eating glass), pagophagia (ice), trichophagia (hair or wool) urophagia (urine) and xylophagia (wood or paper). All of these disorders fall under Pica.

"It's more common in children and adolescents with mental retardation," says Dr. Monee Rassouli, a Toronto physician who is familiar with the disorder. Rassouli says it is also more prevalent in pregnant women.

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There are a number of theories about what causes Pica. Some research points towards iron or zinc deficiency, while the fact that Pica has been reported among several family members indicates hereditary factors may play a role. The most common health problems associated with Pica are lead toxicity and toxocariasis, which is a condition caused by infection from the larva found in soil.

"Some research has shown that Pica occurs more frequently among adolescents who have suffered parental neglect and deprivation," says Rassouli. "This could indicate that the behaviour is compensating for unfulfilled oral needs."

Whatever is causing Mary's behaviour, her story illuminates the fact that addiction can manifest itself in many bizarre and unusual habits, and that when all you're eating is kitty treats, it's time to seek professional help.