Bed Wetting in Children

Bed wetting is involuntary urination, while sleeping, by children past the expected toilet-training age or by adults. By age three, children often demonstrate daytime bladder control, but regular night-time bladder control will often only be mastered by age five. Even after the age of six, one in ten children has problems with bed wetting.

     Bladder control, especially at night, is a complex operation. Usually the problem simply lies in the need for a longer maturing period and resolves itself in time. Boys tend to wet the bed more than girls, and evidence shows a family tendency towards this problem. Parents sometimes start toilet-training their children too early or too late. When children begin to wet their bed after a dry period, the root problem is usually stress. It could be jealousy of a new baby, anxiety about moving house, changing school, trouble with schoolwork, teachers, peers, upset over family rows or anything else that causes stress, over-excitement, insecurity or unhappiness. If this is the case, your child will need plenty of love and reassurance from you, and not reprimanding for something that cannot be helped. It can be quite humiliating for an older child to find that he or she has wet the bed and that other people know about it.

     Allergies cause some children’s bladders to spasm. Many times, these children wet their beds every night because of the milk or fruit juice they drink at bedtime. Some juices that can cause a problem include orange, apple, grapefruit, pineapple and grape. Other typical allergy-causing foods are wheat, corn, soya, eggs and tomatoes. An anatomical anomaly or an infection is a rare cause. Deep sleep due to low blood sugar (hypoglycaemia) can lead to bedwetting since the brain does not know that the bladder is about to empty.

     To prevent accidents, avoid fluids an hour before bedtime. Include adequate fibre in the diet to prevent constipation, which may provoke bedwetting. To determine if bedwetting is linked to a food allergy, try an elimination diet. If the offending food is eliminated, the problem will disappear. Give your child foods high in silica, calcium and magnesium. Sesame seeds, almonds, porridge, milk pudding with figs and bananas are good sources of these minerals. Calcium and magnesium relax the system and can help counteract the nervous tension which often provokes bedwetting. Silica strengthens the urinary tract and kidney and bladder functions.

     St John’s Wort Oil massaged into the pelvic area every night helps to relax any nervousness of the urinary tract. Herbs such as Horsetail has been used for generations to help bedwetting - it’s now known that Horsetail contains high levels of silica which strengthens the urinary tract. When using Horsetail, you have to give breaks every three or four weeks of a week to avoid any irritation of the bladder due to the high mineral content.

     If you feel your child’s bedwetting stems from emotional disturbance, add lemon balm, camomile or wild oat to the above to relax and soothe the nerves.

     Deal with the problem actively but patiently, without undue attention. Bedwetting is involuntary - old-fashioned methods of praising, restricting fluids in the afternoon and punishing do not work and only perpetuate the problem.

     Some children tend to wet the bed more if they get cold. So make sure they are always well covered and put extra clothes on if they habitually kick their bedclothes off at night.

David Foley

MNIMH, MRCHM

Medical Herbalist