Basic Information on Child Bed Wetting

When we speak of bed wetting, first things that come to mind are babies or generally speaking, children.  Wetting your bed can really become embarrassing especially when you have not overcome it yet by the age of around five or six.  Getting to know more about bed wetting in children can be give a little hope and encourgement to the one going through the condition. 

In medical terms, bed wetting is called enuresis.  There are actually two types of enuresis.  The first one is called primary enuresis.  You might be unaware but 80% of kids undergo this.  If your child has been wetting the bed for more than six months, it is considered as primary enuresis. However, if you child has been having dry nights then he or she suddenly wet the bed again, that is considered as secondary enuresis. 

Some people think that bed wetters are too lazy too get up and urinate in the comfort room so they just pee in their beds.  That is one of the most common misconception people have about bed wetters.  The truth is, no one bed wets intentionally.  There are just some things that these people cannot control like the following:  bladder development, genes, depth of sleep and hormones.  When a child grows up, ideally, all organs of the body should grow simultaneously.  However, with bed wetters, their bladders develop slower.  As a result, the sphincter, the muscle of the muscle of the bladder that controls a person's urination, is not as strong as it should be.  Therefore, resulting to bed wetting.

A lot of you might be unaware that genes also play a role in enuresis.  if you notice that your child has been wetting the bed, try to check if you too, as a child, has had incidents of bed wetting.  If one of the parents has bedwet as a kid, there is 40% chance that their child will wet the bed.  The possibility of the child to bedwet can increase to 70% if both or his parents has had a history of enuresis.  The depth of sleep has also something to do with bed wetting.  There are kids who sleep so soundly and are not too sensitive to their brain signals yet when they need to pee.  Another cause could also be hormones.  The body releases anti-deuretic hormone or ADH to lessen the kidney's urine production during sleep.  Some children might have lower levels of ADH production yielding to bed wetting.

The good news is bed wetting is treatable.  There are a lot of available treatments from drug medications to behavior therapies.  For short term relief, some physicians prescribe drugs such as Desmopressin Acetate or Imipramine.  However, these drugs can have serious side effects so there is a need for the patient to be supervised closely by a doctor.  The simplest and most safest way to treat bed wetting is to limit your fluid intake before sleeping.  It is best to avoid caffeine and carbonated drinks.  It is advised to limit fluid intake for at least two hours before sleeping time.  Then have one last trip to the bathroom before sleeping. 

You can also do bladder conditioning by asking your child to control his urination at increasing intervals.  This can strengthen the muscles of the bladder.  Bed wetting alarms might also do the trick.  These devices wake you up at the first drop of urine.  It can train the brain to automatically control one's urination at the wrong places at the wrong time.

Bed wetting can badly affect a child's self esteem so it is important to talk to your child and explain to him or her that bed wetting is not something he or she should be ashamed of.  Encourage your child by telling him that he is not alone in dealing with the situation.  Together, look forward to dry nights ahead.