Are There People Who Eat Poop? | What It Can Mean

Yes, some people do eat feces, and the behavior is called coprophagia, a rare sign that can point to a medical or psychiatric issue.

It’s a blunt question, but a real one. Yes, there are people who eat poop. In medical language, that behavior is called coprophagia. It’s rare in humans, and it usually isn’t a random habit. When it shows up, it can be tied to a health condition, a psychiatric disorder, a developmental disorder, brain injury, dementia, or a severe form of pica.

That distinction matters. A gross-out reaction is easy. A useful answer takes a different path. This behavior is better understood as a warning sign than as a lifestyle choice. If you’re asking out of worry about yourself, a child, or another adult, the main question is not “Why would anyone do that?” It’s “What could be driving it, and how risky is it?”

Are There People Who Eat Poop? What The Medical Term Means

The short name is coprophagia. The National Library of Medicine lists human coprophagia as a rare behavior involving consumption of excrement. You can see that wording in the NLM’s MedGen entry for human coprophagia. “Rare” is the word to hold onto here. This is not common human eating behavior.

Doctors don’t treat it as a quirky preference. They treat it as a symptom or behavior that needs context. In one person, it may sit beside severe cognitive decline. In another, it may happen with pica, compulsions, psychosis, or a neurological problem. In a child, the meaning can differ from the meaning in an older adult. Age, mental state, and the rest of the symptom picture shape what comes next.

Why Someone Might Eat Feces

There isn’t one single cause. Coprophagia can show up for different reasons, and the pattern around it matters more than the act alone. A one-time event and a repeated behavior do not carry the same weight.

Psychiatric And Behavioral Causes

Some cases are linked to psychiatric illness. That can include severe obsessive behavior, psychosis, or conditions that distort judgment and impulse control. In other cases, the behavior falls under pica, which is the repeated eating of nonfood substances. MedlinePlus describes pica as a pattern of eating non-food materials, and that gives a useful frame for part of the picture.

Pica doesn’t always involve feces. Many people with pica eat dirt, paper, chalk, ice, hair, or other nonfood items. Still, coprophagia can overlap with that broader pattern, especially when a person has developmental delay, autism with severe behavioral symptoms, or another condition that affects judgment and self-control.

Brain And Cognitive Causes

Coprophagia has also been reported in people with dementia, major brain injury, and other neurological disorders. A damaged brain can change impulse control, awareness, and social behavior. A person may lose the normal “stop” signal that prevents acts that are dangerous or taboo.

That is one reason this behavior in an older adult should never be brushed off. If it appears out of nowhere, it can fit into a larger shift in memory, mood, awareness, or daily function.

Developmental And Care Issues

Some children and adults with severe developmental disorders may smear or ingest feces. That can happen with sensory seeking, poor toilet training, limited language, poor supervision, or severe behavioral dysregulation. In these cases, the behavior still needs medical review. You do not want to assume it is “just behavioral” and miss a broader problem.

• Repeated ingestion points to a bigger issue than simple curiosity.
• New behavior in an older adult raises concern for cognitive decline or delirium.
• Behavior paired with confusion, aggression, or hallucinations raises the level of concern.
• In a child, age and developmental stage matter a lot.

What Makes Eating Poop Risky

The biggest issue is infection. Feces can carry bacteria, viruses, and parasites. Once that material reaches the mouth, those germs can enter the digestive tract and cause illness. The exact risk depends on whose feces were eaten, how much was eaten, and whether the source carried an infection.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that Shigella germs spread when fecal material reaches the mouth. That same fecal-oral route can spread other germs too. So while people often laugh at the idea, the medical concern is plain: poop can contain disease-causing organisms.

There is also a mechanical risk. If the person has trouble swallowing, gags, or chokes easily, any nonfood material can lead to choking or aspiration. Aspiration means material goes into the airway instead of the stomach. That can trigger coughing, breathing trouble, or a lung infection.

Risk Area	What It Can Lead To	Why It Happens
Bacterial infection	Diarrhea, fever, stomach cramps	Feces can carry germs such as Shigella and other gut bacteria
Viral illness	Vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration	Fecal material may contain viruses spread by the fecal-oral route
Parasitic infection	Loose stools, belly pain, weight loss	Parasites can pass through contaminated stool
Choking	Airway blockage, coughing, distress	Nonfood material may be swallowed poorly
Aspiration	Lung irritation or pneumonia	Material enters the airway instead of the stomach
Mouth and gut irritation	Nausea, gagging, vomiting	Feces can irritate the mouth, throat, and stomach
Delayed diagnosis	Missed psychiatric or brain disorder	The behavior may be a symptom of a larger illness
Repeat exposure	Ongoing illness and hygiene problems	Without treatment, the pattern may continue

Eating Poop In Humans: What Coprophagia Can Point To

Doctors usually work backward from the behavior. They ask what else is going on. Is the person confused? Are they losing memory? Do they eat other nonfood items too? Did the behavior start after a head injury? Are there signs of severe mental illness, neglect, or a swallowing problem?

A careful workup may include a physical exam, review of medications, mental status screening, and lab work when pica or malnutrition is on the table. Iron and zinc deficiency are classic triggers for some forms of pica, though that does not explain every case of coprophagia. A clinician may also screen for constipation, bowel issues, and oral sensory problems in children or adults with developmental disorders.

What Parents And Caregivers Should Notice

Context tells the story. A toddler who briefly mouths something dirty is not the same as an older child or adult who repeatedly seeks out feces. Frequency matters. So does timing. If the behavior is new, escalating, or paired with other changes, it deserves prompt medical attention.

• Watch for repeated episodes, not just one odd incident.
• Notice whether the person is eating other nonfood items.
• Track changes in sleep, mood, memory, speech, or walking.
• Write down recent illness, medication changes, or bowel trouble.
• Note whether the person seems confused, distressed, or unaware.

That kind of detail helps a clinician move faster. It can also separate a sensory or behavioral pattern from a new medical decline.

Situation	What It May Suggest	When To Act
One brief event in a toddler	Curiosity or poor supervision	Call a doctor if symptoms follow or it happens again
Repeated behavior in a child	Pica, developmental issue, sensory-seeking	Schedule a medical visit soon
New behavior in an older adult	Dementia, delirium, brain disorder	Seek prompt medical review
Behavior with fever, vomiting, or diarrhea	Possible infection after ingestion	Get medical care the same day
Behavior with choking or coughing	Aspiration risk	Urgent care or emergency help may be needed

What To Do If This Happens

Do not punish the person or turn it into a shame spiral. That usually makes care harder and tells you nothing useful. Start with safety. Remove access to soiled diapers, clothing, or surfaces. Clean the mouth gently. Then watch for fever, vomiting, diarrhea, belly pain, coughing, or breathing trouble.

Next, call a medical professional. If the person is choking, short of breath, severely confused, or suddenly acting unlike themselves, treat that as urgent. If the person is stable, a regular clinic visit is still worth setting up soon. The act itself is unusual enough that it should not be ignored.

When Emergency Care Makes Sense

Go in right away if you see any of these:

• Choking, blue lips, noisy breathing, or severe coughing
• High fever or signs of dehydration
• Sudden confusion, agitation, or loss of awareness
• Bloody stool, severe vomiting, or strong belly pain
• A head injury or seizure near the time the behavior started

What Treatment Usually Looks Like

Treatment depends on the cause. If pica is part of the picture, the plan may include nutrient testing, behavior work, and changes in supervision. If dementia or brain disease is driving the behavior, the target shifts to safety and management of the underlying condition. If severe mental illness is present, psychiatric care comes into the picture.

That is why internet answers can only go so far. “People eat poop because they’re weird” is lazy and wrong. In humans, coprophagia is rare, risky, and often tied to a larger issue that needs proper care. The person may need medical testing, psychiatric care, behavioral treatment, or all three.

If you were asking this out of plain curiosity, the honest answer is yes. If you were asking because you saw it happen, the more useful answer is this: treat it as a red flag, not a joke.