My niece did that. She had Pica!
Could you maybe try putting cheerios in a blender and make him like a sand box of that??? I mean i know it wont solve the issue but he’ll be thinking ita sand while you dont have to be aftwr him for eating it 
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Kids sometimes let curiosity get the best of them…
Does he do it often?
Talk to his pediatrician for sure.
Could have a deficiency or pica?
Again best to discuss with his doctor.
https://www.google.com/search?q=eating+sand+and+dirt&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-us&client=safari
It is usually a sign for a mineral deficiency.
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When my son was little hed chew on window sills and eat paper… big difference from sand and dirt but turned out he was severely anemic and ended up getting 3 blood transfusions and a 4 day hospital stay. Doctors said that most kids in that position will go after paper or random things so definitely make sure you stay with your little ones appointment.
There is an illness that makes people eat strange things like was mentioned.
There is a medical name for it.
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Sometimes my almost 4 year old will put weird things in her mouth. Such as dirt / sand / lick rocks. She has been checked for pica and her doctor said kids just do weird things because they’re weird 
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My daughter’s diet consists of crayons, markers, dirt, grass, chalk, and her favourite the cats food. 
no seriously she is healthy but loves some seriously nasty stuff and I just have to keep a hawk eye on her.
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He’s 18 months, they put everything in their mouth. I think this is normal toddler behavior.
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That doesn’t sound normal at all. Definitely needs to be fully screened by his Dr
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a kid wouldnt be a kid if didnt eat dirt at any age .id probably worry if ate all the time though and nothing else.
My grandson would eat tree bark…
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He is definitely lacking something in his lil body …talk to his Dr
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sounds like Pica… Glad you’re going to the doctor
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Could possibly be Pica - condition where people eat strange things
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PICA for sure. Sounds like he has some deficiency. Just get him tested and keep him away from dirt, sand, stones and all of that until he sees his Dr. Best of luck!
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I used to suck on stones as a young child. I used to eat that paste they made in scho.i always eat my pencils. I have MS
MMMMMmmmm
My son did this doctor said feed him eggs in morning.he stopped in about a week
It’s called Pica and is typically a sign of low iron but not always.
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My daughter was the same and she had an eating disorder called pica.
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Could be a vitamin deficiency, but also, he’s a baby. They’ll put whatever they can get into their mouths. Hope you get clear answers at the Dr.
Could be PICA, but also young ones explore with their mouths at that age, so perfectly natural, even though its gross lol x
Sounds like lack of iron. My Lil brother did that.
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Could be anemic or have a zinc or calcium deficiency.
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My son is 7 nearly 8 and we going through the PICA diagnosis … x
We originate from earth.We have all kinds of earthly minerals and proteins our body consists of.The book of Psalms says we are wonderfully made.He maybe lacks some kind of vitamin.I am not a professional docter.
As you wrote you will take your little man the the Dokter.Do not fret too much.But keep the animals droppings far away…
All the best for your little boy!⚘⚘⚘
He’s a child all children eat dirt and stuff off the floor it’s what they do! Kids out things in their mouth that they shouldn’t all the time I wouldn’t say it’s anything medical just stop him for doing it and keep an eye on him🤷 give him something to hold when he goes outside ice lolly’s are a good one.
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My son got dianosed with pica but he got dianosed because he is level 3 autism not saying the kid is but mine is
My niece used to eat lotion. She would just pump some in her hand and lick it. She eventually grew out of it, we thought it was Pica too but she just stopped one day 
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Help a mama out and respond anonymously on our forum. Should I be concerned that my grandson likes eating sand and dirt?
It’s a child thing, putting things in their mouth. I did it, 71 now, don’t worry about it. If it bothers you, keep him away from sand, dirt, gravel, etc. But really, I wouldn’t worry about it.
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Could be Pica, but my daughter did the same thing up until she was almost 5. She was the only one out of my four kiddos that did this. She ate dirt, sand, leaves, flowers, cat food was her main thing. I brought up my concerns to her pediatrician when she about 2, they ran a blood test and found she wasn’t lacking anything. No deficiencies anywhere. She eventually grew out of it and is perfectly healthy. In fact, she is the one who rarely ever gets sick out of the four.
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He has some sort of deficiency … they crave weird things. I cannot remember that precise deficiency.
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common garden variety dirt is beneficial to the developing immune system. It is thought that one reason there is such a lot of allergy among children today is that they are not exposed to enough soil.
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Keep him away from that stuff. He could ingest parasites that way, and dirt is not good for humans. He could eat something that would poison him, too.
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I used to like to eat coal and common garden worms, make mud pies and eat some of that too, eew! grew out of it like most young toddlers. It didn’t do me any harm. A check up at the doctors is never a bad idea though.
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Could be pica, could be sensory issues.
Could also just be a boy!
I have a son with autism and that’s one issue we delt with.
Pediatrician is the best place to start!
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It could be pica. I think it’s a nutritional deficiency. Take him to the doctor and ask.
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All toddlers put things in their mouths. Its their first true sense they learn with. They can feel if its soft or hard, cold or hot, sweet or bitter.
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It sounds like he is anemic and has pica that is very common in iron deficient anemia.
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All kids eat stuff . When some one says oh no I have sand in my mouth how does your mouth feel ?? Normally gross as when we are children we eat or mouth most things and learn not to as adults . Some goes for most things like chewing on a brush or rock
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I saw my daughter about 18mths old in tthe sand pit shovelling sand in her mouth I thoughtof all the cats aroundd hard to stop but she is nearly 60 now so didnt hurt her b
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Better check that out… You don’t want him chewing on the wood bench or the plasTic slide when he’s 5yrs old instead of trying to make friends. 
My grandson ate dirt all the time couldn’t stop him. Until one time I had tomato 
growing in a pot he grabbed some of the dirt out of it . It was black dirt compost. He keep trying to get the taste out of his mouth. He couldn’t He keep trying to get ready of it. ( it had cow poo mixed in it. ) That was the last time he ate dirt. I now it sounds bad. But how can u stop a child from getting in stuff. I hope no one thinks bad of us for this. We was on a lake at the time. So the beach was right there.
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My grandson had a habit of eating dry dog food so I switch to dry dog food with vegetables and told the lady at the WIC and she just laughed
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My daughter used to eat stones and mud when she was younger and she was fine, I could never leave my home unless my son had a bowl of cat biscuits and he was fine to. X
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May have a condition called Pica. Not harmful. My grandson has it
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No. He’ll grow out of it. Dirt actually has minerals in it that are good for him and us. That’s why our grandparents and our great grandparents were so healthy. You can actually get healthy “ dirt pills”
From the health store. If you want him to stop, you can use a deterrent like some kind of pepper like Bell, ect.
My sister used to like to eat on bricks when she was little. Doctor said let her do it. It was a vitamin deficiency she needed it. Never hurt her.
I’m 73 years old, as a child I ate sand by the hand full all the time. I’ve made it this long and it really did t hurt me.
Yes, there’s something wrong. This is called Pica. It generally means there is a specific nutrient missing.
You’ll want to keep your 2 yr old grandson away from soil near older buildings because they could contain lead.
This article is written by a pediatrician, I am not a medical professional. Hopefully answers will come of the appointment.
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When my daughter was a toddler she did the same. Dr said she was short of minerals??? Plus she ate snails ??? No diagnosis for that.
My mother said I eat dirt when I was a little kid. And she asked the doctor is it okay and why and he said she’s just missing the nutrients that dirt has.
Not sticks and stones but every other thing for my daughter even raw dough when I was baking soap,candles etc she is in her 40ties and well
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My boy did that and they tested his iron and he was low
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He may have Pica. A vitamin deficiency & Craving for unnatural things. Take him to the doctor.
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My son sucked on rocks and matchbox cars… chipped all his baby teeth had to have them capped 
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No I used to love eating sand nor sure why. It builds his immune system. But I would stop him if it’s a lot. I only ate small amounts of sand.
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Have his iron checked. Mention to ldr. Signs of iron deficiency anemia. It could just be a kid thing, or it could be a real problem. Please ask his pediatrician
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I’m a nurse. Eating non-food things like this is called pica. It often signals an iron deficiency.
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I am aware of a child that ate dirt and he had a severe iron diffency
I use to eat little pebbles when I was small in texas
Why isn’t anyone preventing him from eating things he shouldn’t? Toddlers should be constantly supervised ! The doctor visit is wise. Check for a nutritional deficiency.
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My son did that and it stopped when we put him on vitamins
My dr told me that it means a lack of vitamins and minerals. He had me to put my daughter on flintstone vitamins and she stopped within a month of taking her first vitamin
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My son used to eat dirt and dog pellets
I used to eat coal ashes. I’m mid 70’s now!
This is pica,it could be due to iron deficiency anaemia Get his blood checked for hb,iron and ferritin
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One symptom of autism in children is eating non food items. It’s called pica.
I went through all that with my son about being low on iron and eating newspaper and dirt
Yes, that’s called pica. May end up requiring medication.
We all eat a peck of dirt b4 we die my mum would say to her 9 children
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Diet eating can.mean iron deficiency
Ice chewing also
He’s low on iron we did when we was little
A sign of low iron is eating dirt.
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Sounds like an Iron Deficiency to me
Put him in a play pen away from that stuff till he out grows that habbit.
Sounds like the baby is lacking something nutritionally.
Feed him regular meals with snacks…put him at play in the grassy areas only
My kids always are dirt all kids do from time to time
Can someone tell me why my toddler always eats paper?
Pica is what come to mind when I read this post.
Silica or cilica is the chemical youngsters crave
Good. Maybe you should be his filter for awhile.
He is lacking some sort of Vitamins and minerals
Well they do say a human ears a ton of dirt before he/she dies.
Teach them not to do that.
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Glad you are going to the doctor about it.
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Sounds like a normal kid to me
Mines eat plastic , rubber n wood!!. Basicale anything she can brake w her teeth 
I think i did this as a child too.
Talk to his physical. He needs some sort of vitamin.
Vitamin deficiency. Dr will know what he needs to replace the dirt
One of mine ate sand by the handful when we went to the beach. She’s grown now & the mother of 5 boys. Turned out just fine
That’s pica. It can be a sign of autism. Sometimes a deficiency.
Since he’s eating that much sand and dirt, its time to give him a pack or two of your favorite seeds, sit back and watch them grow
Have him checked for anemia.
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Yes he needs a doctor now it’s a deficiency and probably has worms
18 months old. Kids put everything they can get their hands on in their mouth.
When kids eat dirt or news papers or paper they are low on iron
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