Understand Bedwetting

(Nocturnal Enuresis)

Understanding enuresis allows you to react more effectively.

Understand Bedwetting

(Nocturnal Enuresis)

Nocturnal Enuresis commonly known as « Bedwetting », is a medical term used in relation to people, usually children, who wet the bed involuntarily during their sleep. It can happen during the night or even an afternoon nap.

Many children will not urinate more than once during the night, but it is common to see children wetting the bed, 2, 3 and even 4 times during the same night.

And this, to the dismay of parents who must wash the bed sheets despite the fact that the child may also wear a diaper.

Often parents do not know what to do about this problem.

According to the Canadian Paediatric Society, nocturnal enuresis, (Bedwetting) affects up to 15% of children aged 5 years and older.

Is Bedwetting Genetic?

In many cases, yes. Enuresis is commonly transmitted by genes (about 80% of cases). It is usually due to a combination of 2 or more factors such as :

  • immature bladder
  • hyperactive bladder
  • very deep sleep that prevents the child from feeling the urge
  • psychological conditions

Without adequate external intervention or treatment, it is difficult to predict at what age the child will voluntarily stop wetting his or her bed.

Many may suffer from nighttime urinary incontinence into adolescence and even beyond.

Primary Nocturnal Enuresis

The child has been bedwetting since birth.

This type of enuresis is more common with young boys. It is found in approximately 10% to 15% of kids younger than 5 years old, in about 6% to 8% of kids below 8 years old, and it drops to 1% or 2% of kids who are 15 years old and below.

Secondary Nocturnal Enuresis

The child goes through an extended period without wetting his or her bed at night (about 3 months or more) and then reverts to nighttime wetting.

It is more common than people think. It can also be very disturbing for parents who try to associate this disorder with some event that may have happened in their child’s life.

As for primary enuresis, the secondary enuresis is more common among boys but not significantly.

Quick Questions

Quick Questions

Should we have our child wear night time absorbent underwear or simply wash the bed sheets?

This is a legitimate question as we often hear that having children wearing night time absorbent underwear encourages laziness.

Opinions often differ on that matter.

By definition, Enuresis is involuntary. It is thus irrelevant to consider laziness as a factor.

Wearing absorbent underwear will not change anything because enuresis is not due to laziness.

Here is what we suggest: if your child is wearing night time underwear, have him /her sleep without it for a 2-3 week trial period at a time.

If he or she still wets the bed every night, do not waste energy in washing the sheets every day.

It’s better to have your child wear night time underwear for a certain time and try again in a few weeks.

When children really have a bedwetting disorder, they need to be treated.

Washing the bedsheets or wearing underwear such as Pull Ups or Goodnites will not encourage laziness because your child is sleeping!

When you and your child are tired of the bedwetting and ready to try a treatment, we, at Enureflex, are here to help and support you.

What are the chances that a kid has a bedwetting disorder when both parents had it?

Children whose parents were both bedwetters (nocturnal enuresis or daytime bedwetting) have up to 65% chance of bedwetting.

In such a situation, as soon as parents detect any sign of distress that may have an impact on their child’s behaviour or self-esteem, they should consider an external intervention or treatment.

Do not hesitate to consult your doctor to get more advice.

At what age can we consider bedwetting “nocturnal enuresis”?

Most children will be able to sleep through the night without bedwetting from the age of 3.

However, it is recommended to wait until the child turns 5 years old before considering it a nocturnal enuresis disorder and going ahead with a treatment.

Parents must ask themselves the following question before considering this a real bedwetting disorder:

Is this situation really bothering my child?

– If the answer is “NO”, parents should wait until their child shows signs that he/she wants to do something about it.

– If the answer is “YES”, parents should take action to try to help their child going through this uncomfortable situation.

Because of genetic conditions, chances of nocturnal enuresis are real and a bedwetting alarm treatment becomes a possible solution that is completely safe.

Regarding the costs associated with the alarm treatment, it is often more advantageous than you think to engage in such a treatment rather than waiting and continuing to pay for night time absorbent underwear and other costs associated with repeatedly having to wash bed sheets.

At this point, the decision is yours and you may want to consider all the possibilities before making the right decision.

Diurnal and nocturnal enuresis (bedwetting) is usually transmitted by genetically.

I am a consultant at Enureflex and I enjoy doing follow-ups with my customers, particularly since we’ve released the new Night Guard system.

Parents are satisfied and often very surprised at the results they get.

They often tell us about the positive effects Enureflex has had on eliminating the bedwetting issue.

It is truly amazing!



This article “Understand Bedwetting” has been written and published by Enureflex