{"title":"Brain Effects of Iron Deficiency-Related Pagophagia.","authors":"Robert Lalonde, Catherine Strazielle","doi":"10.1097/NMD.0000000000001831","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Abstract: </strong>Pagophagia, defined as compulsive ice eating or ice chewing, is a common form of an eating anomaly (pica) caused by iron deficiency and is treated with iron replacement therapy. The physiological characteristics of pagophagia are reviewed. In one study, iron-deficient subjects were deficient in a test of attention, and ice consumption improved the subjects' response time relative to those drinking tepid water, an effect attributed to increased blood perfusion to the brain and heart. Several studies show that cold stimuli applied to the mouth increase blood flow velocity in the middle cerebral artery, increase peripheral blood pressure, and cause bradycardia. It is possible that pagophagia facilitates attention by elevating cerebral blood flow or by providing more oxygen to the brain. More research effort should be paid to the neurobehavioral impact of cold stimuli ingestion in humans and animals.</p>","PeriodicalId":16480,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease","volume":" ","pages":"140-144"},"PeriodicalIF":1.6000,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1097/NMD.0000000000001831","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2025/5/5 0:00:00","PubModel":"Epub","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"CLINICAL NEUROLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Abstract: Pagophagia, defined as compulsive ice eating or ice chewing, is a common form of an eating anomaly (pica) caused by iron deficiency and is treated with iron replacement therapy. The physiological characteristics of pagophagia are reviewed. In one study, iron-deficient subjects were deficient in a test of attention, and ice consumption improved the subjects' response time relative to those drinking tepid water, an effect attributed to increased blood perfusion to the brain and heart. Several studies show that cold stimuli applied to the mouth increase blood flow velocity in the middle cerebral artery, increase peripheral blood pressure, and cause bradycardia. It is possible that pagophagia facilitates attention by elevating cerebral blood flow or by providing more oxygen to the brain. More research effort should be paid to the neurobehavioral impact of cold stimuli ingestion in humans and animals.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease publishes peer-reviewed articles containing new data or ways of reorganizing established knowledge relevant to understanding and modifying human behavior, especially that defined as impaired or diseased, and the context, applications and effects of that knowledge. Our policy is summarized by the slogan, "Behavioral science for clinical practice." We consider articles that include at least one behavioral variable, clear definition of study populations, and replicable research designs. Authors should use the active voice and first person whenever possible.