Woman reveals she eats an entire bottle of Johnson's baby powder every day

A woman from New Orleans has revealed that she is addicted to eating an entire bottle of Johnson's baby powder every day.

Dreka Martin, who has spent a staggering $4000 worth of the stuff, says ten years ago she enjoyed tasting the skin treatment after showering her child but then found herself craving it, reports The Guardian.

Dreka explained that she finds it enticing when the powder "melts" in her mouth after she is done chewing it for up to 40 seconds before swallowing it.

Although her cravings are quite strong, she revealed that she was able to avoid her strange addiction while pregnant with her three-year-old son Faiz Palmer. She has shared that she's concerned her son will also become addicted as he asks for the powder in the bath after seeing her eating it.

Currently, Dreka spends $14 on a bottle a day since January, which adds up to approximately $3,780 so far this year. Despite eating a large amount of the powder regularly, she claims she has never experienced any health or digestive issues.

Johnson's said their baby powder is formulated "for use on the skin only" and warned that it should not be ingested, says The Guardian.

Although not confirmed, Dreka claims to have pica, which is an eating disorder characterized by compulsions to eat non-food items, like chalk or paint.

Dreka, who is also a makeup artist, admits that she has to hide her addiction from friends and family due to the judgmental remarks and questions they ask her about the addiction.

Dreka, from Louisiana, said: "I love eating baby powder. It tastes exactly how it smells. It's just something I do to cope. It just makes me feel good and makes me happy.

"It's an addiction that I try to stop but I just can't. When I think about it my mouth waters. It's gotten to the point where I eat baby powder and I don't even care about eating real food.

"If I had the choice between eating real food and baby powder, I'd choose baby powder. I would spend my last dollar on it because I need it so much."

She continued: "I kept it a secret from my mum for a month but she asked why the baby powder was being used so fast. Normally we had a bottle for two months and it was being used in a week so she had a feeling that something was wrong.

"I've tried to hide it from everybody but I do it so often and I won't be able to talk when my mouth is full of it. They ask what's in my mouth and I tell them it's baby powder.

"Friends and family tell me to stop and that it's bad for my health. It sometimes upsets me when they judge me.

"When they worry it makes me want to stop, but it's not that easy. I still sneak and do it. I can't just stop.

"It's an addiction that I try to stop but I just can't. When I think about it my mouth waters. It's gotten to the point where I eat baby powder and I don't even care about eating real food.

"If I had the choice between eating real food and baby powder, I'd choose baby powder. I would spend my last dollar on it because I need it so much."

She continued: "I kept it a secret from my mum for a month but she asked why the baby powder was being used so fast. Normally we had a bottle for two months and it was being used in a week so she had a feeling that something was wrong.

"I've tried to hide it from everybody but I do it so often and I won't be able to talk when my mouth is full of it. They ask what's in my mouth and I tell them it's baby powder.

"Friends and family tell me to stop and that it's bad for my health. It sometimes upsets me when they judge me.

"When they worry it makes me want to stop, but it's not that easy. I still sneak and do it. I can't just stop.

Dreka revealed that she needed six blood transfusions during her pregnancy to stop her baby powder cravings as doctors believed they were related to low iron levels.

Later on, she confessed to eating it again when her son was three months old and she's now taking iron pills to dampen her cravings.

But she says she won't stop eating baby powder anytime soon, despite being 'worried' her son will follow in her footsteps.

Dreka said: "When I get my son out of the tub I put the baby powder on him and he asks for some because he will see that I eat it.

"I act like I'm putting it in his mouth. He knows when I put it in my mouth, I can't talk so he walks around making chewing noises.

"I know he only wants to eat it because he sees me eating. It makes me want to stop. It worries me."

Dreka sharing her addiction on TikTok has led her to gain more than 400,000 likes and 24,000 followers, including some who suffer with similar issues and others who mock her.

Dreka said: "I know there are other people out there like me who said they didn't think they were normal until they saw me do it. They're not alone. I want to raise awareness. I was at work over the weekend and a girl came up to me and said she saw my TikTok and she told me she keeps one of the smaller baby powders in her bra.

"I get a lot of hate comments but I've been through so much in my life that somebody talking about me is the least of my worries. Some people see me and say, 'that's the girl that eats the baby powder. How are you eating that? Ew.'

"Other people that do it are scared or embarrassed that people are going to talk about them. If anything, I want to stop for myself and my son. He's my main concern."

A spokesperson for Johnson's said: "Johnson's Cornstarch Baby Powder with Aloe & Vitamin E is formulated for use on the skin only and should not be ingested. As with all our products, consumers should read and follow the directions for use on the label."