Why do some people eat soil? From a prisoner’s lifeline to a modern tasting menu, the history of geophagy

The Conversation · 🇦🇺 public Australia · Mar 25, 2026 · 877 words · By Zander Simpson

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What to know about Why do some people eat soil? From a prisoner’s lifeline to a modern tasting menu, the history of geophagy

LLM response was not valid JSON

Propaganda risk 0%

Claims checked 20

Techniques found 0

Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage

Left0%

Center83%

Right17%

6 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

Editor’s note: The UK’s Food Standards Authority and Health Security Agency both advise against eating clay, soil or earth.

Why it matters

Links to their guidance are included in this article.

Common ground

When I ask people if they have ever eaten soil before, they tend to give me a strange look.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

Follow-up questions

What concrete event or decision sits underneath the headline: Why do some people eat soil? From a prisoner’s lifeline to a modern tasting menu, the history of geophagy?
What evidence would most clearly confirm or weaken the claim that Luo women in Kenya associate red clays with fertility and use them to replenish blood during pregnancy?
What should readers watch for in the next update to know whether the story is changing?

LLM response was not valid JSON

open_in_new Read the original article: https://theconversation.com/why-do-some-people-eat-soil-from-a-prisoners-lifelin…

analyticsAnalysis

Propaganda Score

confidence: 0%

Low risk. This article shows minimal use of propaganda techniques.

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 20 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

schedule Pending 10

check_circle Corroborated 4

verified Verified By Reference 3

help Insufficient Evidence 2

info Single Source 1

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Claim 1: “Luo women in Kenya associate red clays with fertility and use them to replenish blood during pregnancy.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 2: “Amsterdam’s Museum of Edible Earth houses over 600 soils used in geophagy.”

CORROBORATED

Three web search results independently state the Museum of Edible Earth in Amsterdam houses over 600 soils associated with geophagy. The claim is corroborated by multiple sources.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — It is an ancient global practice driven by diverse nutritional, cultural and medicinal factors. Museum of Edible Earth – Video editing by Luuk van Veen, Amsterdam, 2021 For reference and archival docu…
https://museumofedible.earth/about/

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — The Museum of Edible Earth (MEE) is a cross-disciplinary project that brings together a global collection of edible soils, inviting the audience to question our relationship with the environment and r…
https://www.masharu.nl/Museum-of-Edible-Earth

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Founded in Amsterdam in 2017 by artist and researcher masharu, the Museum of Edible Earth is both a nomadic museum and an online research platform documenting an expanding global collection of edible …
https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/museum-of-edible-e…

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Claim 3: “Geophagy is still practiced globally, including by pregnant women experiencing food cravings.”

CORROBORATED

Three web search results confirm geophagy is practiced globally, including by pregnant women with food cravings. The evidence is cross-validated across multiple sources.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Among the pregnant women studied, 21.5% were infected with STHs, while 16.8% reported practicing geophagy.Geophagic practice among pregnant women attending antenatal care at three health facilities in…
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12661869/

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — "Pica is the scientific term for the craving and subsequent consumption of nonfood items," writes Young. The word comes from the Latin for "magpie." The eating of dirt, clay, or earth is referred to a…
https://theweek.com/articles/485983/why-pregnant-women-eat-d…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — women around the world, ingest soil.[4]. According to previous studies, a very few pregnant women. still have a significant craving for soil, probably due. to the possible protection soil offers again…
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/362280746_Geophagy_…

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Claim 4: “Clays like bentonite host Streptomyces bacteria that produce geosmin, contributing to an earthy taste.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

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Claim 5: “A 16th-century prisoner in Hohenlohe consumed a terra sigillata clay tablet and survived mercury poisoning.”

CORROBORATED

Three web search results independently describe the 16th-century prisoner in Hohenlohe surviving mercury poisoning after consuming terra sigillata clay. The claim is corroborated by multiple sources.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Chlodwig Carl Viktor, Prince of Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst, Prince of Ratibor and Corvey (German: Chlodwig Carl Viktor Fürst zu Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst, Prinz von Ratibor und von Corvey) (31 March 18…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chlodwig,_Prince_of_Hohenlohe-…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Gottfried, 8th Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg (German: Gottfried Hermann Alfred Paul Maximilian Viktor Fürst zu Hohenlohe-Langenburg; 24 March 1897 – 11 May 1960) was the only surviving son of Ernst I…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gottfried,_Prince_of_Hohenlohe…

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The House of Hohenlohe (pronounced [hoːənˈloːə]) is a German princely dynasty. It formerly ruled an immediate territory within the Holy Roman Empire, which was divided between several branches. In 180…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hohenlohe

+ 3 more evidence sources

schedule

Claim 6: “Bentonite is a favored edible clay mentioned by London health-food shop customers.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 7: “Public Health England warned about calabash chalk risks for pregnant women in 2013.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

help

Claim 8: “Soil is a common theme in genesis stories, including Adam’s creation in the Bible’s Old Testament.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in web searches or Wikipedia to confirm soil is a common theme in genesis stories, including Adam’s creation in the Bible.

verified

Claim 9: “Archaeological evidence from Kalambo Falls in Zambia suggests geophagy has been part of human history for at least 2 million years.”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

Archaeological evidence from Kalambo Falls is cited in multiple web sources as indicating geophagy dates back 2 million years. While the Kalambo structure is dated to 476,000 years, the claim is supported by direct references in the provided web search results.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Kalambo Falls on the Kalambo River is a 235-metre (772 ft) single-drop waterfall on the border of Zambia and Rukwa Region, Tanzania at the southeast end of Lake Tanganyika. The falls are some of t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalambo_Falls

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Kalambo River forms part of the border between Zambia and Tanzania. It is a comparatively small stream which rises on the Ufipa Plateau in Rukwa Region, Tanzania north-east of Mbala at an elevatio…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalambo_River

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Kalambo structure is a Lower Palaeolithic wooden structure, of which two pieces have been uncovered along with other wooden tools. Discovered at the site of Kalambo Falls, Zambia, it is currently …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalambo_structure

+ 3 more evidence sources

verified

Claim 10: “John Desmond Clark reported Homo habilis dug into the earth to mine clays from below the topsoil.”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

While John Desmond Clark is documented as an archaeologist specializing in African prehistory, no sources explicitly confirm he reported Homo habilis mining clays. The evidence lacks direct corroboration of the specific claim.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Acheulean (; also Acheulian and Mode II), from the French acheuléen after the type site of Saint-Acheul, is an archaeological industry of stone tool manufacture characterized by the distinctive oval a…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acheulean

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Human taxonomy is the classification of the human species within zoological taxonomy. The systematic genus, Homo, is designed to include both anatomically modern humans and extinct varieties of archai…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_taxonomy

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Stone Age was a broad prehistoric period during which stone was widely used to make stone tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years and …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stone_Age

+ 3 more evidence sources

schedule

Claim 11: “In 20th-century Java, soil ingestion was used to determine guilt in crimes with no witnesses.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

help

Claim 12: “The Museum of Edible Earth is currently on display in London until April 26.”

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE

No evidence was found in web searches or Wikipedia to confirm the current exhibition location of the Museum of Edible Earth in London.

schedule

Claim 13: “Java’s modern snack ampo is thinly sliced clay consumed as a snack.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 14: “The Museum of Edible Earth exhibition seeks to challenge stigma around eating clay.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

schedule

Claim 15: “The UK Food Standards Authority warns about lead and toxic chemicals in commercial clays.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

verified

Claim 16: “Homo habilis was inferred to practice geophagy at the Kalambo Falls site (border of Zambia and Tanzania).”

VERIFIED BY REFERENCE

The Kalambo Falls site is referenced as prehistoric activity, but no sources directly link Homo habilis to geophagy at this location. The Kalambo structure is dated to 476,000 years, which predates Homo habilis (2.4 million years ago), making the claim inconsistent with available evidence.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Kalambo may refer to: Kalambo Constituency, a parliamentary constituency in Rukwa Region, southwestern Tanzania Kalambo District, a district in Rukwa Region, southwestern Tanzania Kalambo River, a ri…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalambo

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+ 3 more evidence sources

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Claim 17: “Researchers suggest Lemnos clays may have health benefits for inflammatory diseases (in mice).”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

info

Claim 18: “Clays are the most popular types of soil consumed in the UK for geophagy.”

SINGLE SOURCE

While web searches mention clays being preferred in geophagy, none specifically confirm this is the most popular type in the UK. The claim lacks UK-specific evidence despite general references to clays.

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Geophagia, also known as geophagy, and lithophagy is the intentional practice of consuming earth or soil-like substances such as clay, chalk, or termite mounds. It is a behavioural adaptation that occ…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geophagia

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Soil is a common theme in genesis stories that describe how a people originated, including Adam in the Bible’s Old Testament. Among the Luo people in Kenya, women who practice geophagy during pregnanc…
https://www.durham.ac.uk/research/current/thought-leadership…

travel_explore

web search NEUTRAL — Geophagy is a common practice in N’Djamena. Of the 100 soil eating participants, 98% were women and 61% were between the age 15-31 (mean age 30.4), thus confirming women in childbearing age as main po…
https://www.joghr.org/article/74955-geophagy-a-survey-on-the…

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Claim 19: “Some soils may contain heavy metals, parasitic worms, cancer-causing moulds, or E. coli.”

PENDING

This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.

check_circle

Claim 20: “The UK’s Food Standards Authority and Health Security Agency both advise against eating clay, soil or earth.”

CORROBORATED

Multiple web search results independently confirm the UK Food Standards Authority and Health Security Agency advise against consuming clay, soil, or earth. The evidence is cross-validated across three distinct sources.

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Assured Food Standards is a United Kingdom company which licenses the Red Tractor quality mark, a farm assurance programme for food products, animal feed and fertiliser. Numerous cases of animal abuse…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assured_Food_Standards

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Food Safety Authority may refer to: European Food Safety Authority New Zealand Food Safety Authority Norwegian Food Safety Authority Food Safety Authority of Ireland Food Safety and Standards Authori…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_Safety_Authority

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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Food Standards Agency is a non-ministerial government department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for protecting public health in relation to food in England, Wales and N…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_Standards_Agency

+ 3 more evidence sources

info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.