Bed wetting is common in young children who are learning to control the need to urinate during sleep.
The American Academy of Family Physicians says bed-wetting isn't from naughty behavior or laziness. According to the academy, there may be a medical problem behind the bed-wetting child's behavior, such as:
- Having a family history of bed wetting.
- Having difficulty waking from sleep.
- Being under physical or emotional stress.
- Having a urinary tract infection.
- Experiencing slow development of the central nervous system.
- Having a hormonal imbalance.
- Having an abnormality that affects the spinal cord, the urethral valve in boys or the ureter in girls or boys.
- Having a small bladder.
Reducing fluids before bed and having your child go to the bathroom when starting the bedtime routine (and again just before sleep) will often help reduce bed-wetting, the academy advises.
Health Tip: Help Prevent Bed Wetting
Many children wet the bed until age 5, and an occasional lapse among even older children is common, experts say.
The National Kidney and Urologic Diseases Information Clearinghouse offers these suggestions to help prevent bed wetting:
- Limit your child to one drink with dinner.
- Don't let your child drink anything just before bed.
- Don't give your child beverages that contain caffeine, which accelerates urine production.
- Have your child use the bathroom immediately before bed.
- Don't scold or punish your child for wetting the bed, and encourage dry nights with lots of praise.
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