In times of stress, children eat glue

SOURAV SANYAL
CHANDIGARH: Ink. Gum. Chalk. Lead pencil. Lime plastering on the walls. The list is endless. Unable to bear the ‘‘stress� of modern day living, an increasing number of children, some as young as six years, are getting ‘addicted’ to these ‘alternative’ items.
So intense is the ‘addiction’ that no amount of cajoling, coaxing or even for that matter beating can get the child ‘back on tracks’, as harried parents say.
A woman in Sector 16 is having sleepless nights over her eight-yearold daughter who is ‘addicted’ to dried adhesive. ‘‘Initially we did not give it much thought but then she got so addicted to gum that we had to take medical advice. Be it in school or at home, she is obsessed with glue. She makes small balls out of dried gum and inevitably ends up putting them in her mouth. She even goes to bed with a bottle of gum.We have totally failed to get her to give up this habit. Now we take her to a counsellor every week. Hopefully things would become better,� she says. Another person, sitting in the psychiatry OPD of PGI says, ‘‘My son is extremely fond of licking ink. He is otherwise a normal child but then ever since he was found doing the same in school and reprimanded in class, he has become different. Even now, licking ink continues to be his favourite pastime.�
Such instances abound. While the most common manifestations of such ‘abnormalities’ in children include biting lips, chewing shirt collar or biting nails, experts say that at times the situation might indeed go out of hand. In some cases children are even seen scratching the plaster on the walls and consuming it. ‘‘Stress is the prime factor that leads to such abnormal behaviour in children. However, though their behaviour is abnormal, they are not diseased. Unable to express themselves clearly, they end doing things which appear weird to others. For instance, some children are known to develop a special affinity for eating mud while in others, tendency of eating chalk is pronounced. Not only is stress at school responsible for this but these strange habits often surface if child is under stress at home,’’ added.
‘‘Insecurity is another factor which manifests itself in different forms in different children,� observes Dr BS Chavan, head, department of psychiatry, Government Medical College and Hospital.
Explaining how these habits manifest even in adults, he adds, ‘‘Very often we find adults biting nails, lips or scratching the forehead oblivious of the fact that others around him might find it odd. Such behaviour specially seen in cases where anxiety levels are high.�