Documentary Exposes African American Women Who Eat White Dirt

Last week we reported the bizarre addiction a woman has to sniffing and chewing diapers. This week we’re starting the week off on a similar note, with a little known tradition of eating white dirt — which is actually a rock called kaolin — among African American women in the south.

According to Daily Mail, kaolin can be found along the Atlantic Coast Fall Line in the states of Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Alabama. The substance is used in medicine to treat diarrhea, dysentery and cholera and it can also be found in paper, paint, fiberglass, porcelains, china and toothpaste. While health officials don’t recommend kaolin for eating purposes, some have openly shared that it has health benefits.

Director Adam Forrester of the documentary Eat White Dirt came across this phenomenon known as geophagy — the practice of eating earthy or soil-like substances — while shopping at his local grocery store where he noticed small Ziploc bags of white chalky rocks. When he asked the sales clerk what the rocks were for, the clerk said he wasn’t sure but knew they were for eating purposes so Forrester decided to dig a little deeper.

Anthropologists believe the practice of eating kaolin derived from sub-Saharan African slaves who came to the United States during slavery. When Forrester interviewed several women for his documentary, most of whom live in rural areas, some revealed they eat white dirt every day. Tammy Wright, who is a part of the documentary, also stated by eating kaolin every day, she has lost over 60 pounds. Might be worth a thought, huh?

Eat White Dirt is set to premier this summer. Check out the trailer for the documentary below. What do you think?

EAT WHITE DIRT – trailer from Adam Forrester on Vimeo.