Lithophagy is an ingestion of stones.12 The term comes from Greek roots λίθος + φᾰγω.
The term was suggested in 1922 by Pyotr Dravert.3 In Russian literature the term may also refer to geophagia.2
Discussion
Stones are found ingested by many animals. These called gastroliths.4 In many cases the reason for this is unknown. Stones may be ingested to grind food or to serve as a ballast for aquatic animals.5
Walter Henry Medhurst describes a practice of "eating stones" in 19th-century China6 and Brian S-K Li reported eating of stones as a literary trope in late imperial China (ca. 1550–1800).7
A street food fad of fried stones called suodiu or suodui (嗦丢) as reported in China in 2023.8
References
References
- "Lithophagy Prolongs Voluntary Dives in American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis)". academic.oup.com. Retrieved 2026-03-15.
- Александр Паничев, Литофагия: причины феномена
- Федорова А.И. Свойства и действие природных минералов (обзор литературы)
- Wings O. 2007. A review of gastrolith function with implications for fossil vertebrates and a revised classification. Acta Palaeontol Pol52:1–16.
- T J Uriona, M Lyon, C G Farmer, Lithophagy Prolongs Voluntary Dives in American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis)
- A Glance at the Interior of China Obtained During a Journey Through the Silk and Green Tea Districts Taken in 1845 By Walter Henry Medhurst · 1845 p 15
- Brian S-K Li, The Stone-Eaters: Lithophagy and Scholarly Fantasies of Ascetic Diets in Late Imperial China, 17 September 2025
- *Chinese culinary craze of stir-fried stones rocks the internet