English: The practice of eating soil (called pica or geophagy*) is not uncommon amongst children and pregnant women. The women do it on purpose. Obviously if you're going to eat soil you're going to eat whatever ova are in the soil and makes ascariasis a high probability.

The soil particles show up as white on this plain Xray which is done with a "Barium meal": An X-ray technique where the patient swallows a metallic-based fluid (Barium is the metal) which shows up as white on an X-ray film. The radiologist can watch what happens as this fluid is swallowed and as it goes on down through the stomach and small intestine.

Photo by Larry Hadley, South Africa <a href="http://paedsurg.ukzn.ac.za/Staff/ProfLarryHadley.aspx" rel="nofollow">paedsurg.ukzn.ac.za/Staff/ProfLarryHadley.aspx</a>

• See also here: <a href="http://forum.susana.org/forum/categories/26-health-issues-and-connections-with-sanitation/8092-geophagy-the-cultural-practices-of-eating-soil-common-in-many-sub-saharan-countries" rel="nofollow">forum.susana.org/forum/categories/26-health-issues-and-co...</a>