When thinking about addiction and addictive behavior, most people think about drugs or alcohol. However, many people suffer from addictions that the average person may find strange. Addiction is defined as a persistent behavior that a person engages in despite the fact that this particular behavior has adverse consequences. Here is a list of six strange addictions that people battle.

Chewing Ice

Ice chewing, also known a pagophagia, is considered to be a associated with the pica disorder. Pica causes people to crave eating items that lack any type of nutritional value. According to the Centers for Disease Control, more women are more likely to suffer from this addiction. Pagophagia typically indicates an allergy deficiency.

Social Media Addiction

This may be a more recent issue, but there are some people who cannot live without being connected to some form of social media.People with this addiction find their work and personal lives interrupted by the activity. People with this addiction will start to experience symptoms of withdrawal, like anxiety and even physical illness, when they have not checked for updates in a couple of hours.

Tanning

While tanning serves an aesthetic purpose, people with this addiction get a rush from the beta-endorphins released during tanning. These endorphins help with stress and pain relief. The high felt can be so intense that addicts can experience the same type of withdrawal symptoms that someone going through opiate withdrawal experiences.

Hair Pulling

An impulse-control disorder, hair pulling (trichotillomania) is a condition where people cannot resist the urge to pull out their hair. The hair can come from any area of the body. People with this condition have difficulty in resisting the gratification, relief, felt from pulling out their hair.

Body Modification

Body modification is a seemingly harmless behavior, tattoos and piercings, that can take an addictive turn. The pain and aesthetic nature contributes to the addictive nature of body modification. Body modification becomes an addiction it starts to have a detrimental effect on the body.

Exercise Addiction

People with this addiction work out for several hours a day and arrange their schedules around their exercise schedule. They usually do not miss a day to exercise, even if they are injured. Allowing exercising to disrupt work and social life is an indicator of addiction.

While alcohol and drugs are well-known addictions, there are others that people battle on a regular basis. These addictions may not carry the same stigma, but for those that suffer from them, the consequences are just as real.