Bed-wetting in children

What is normal?

Of course babies wet their nappy any time they feel like it. Becoming ‘dry’ is a complex process. The urine-producing system has to develop its ability to produce less urine at night and coordination has to develop between the maturing nerves and muscles controlling the bladder. Also, the ability to wake up when the bladder is full also has to develop. All this takes time. This happens quite quickly in some children, but is slower in others. Boys tend to be slower than girls, so bed-wetting is three times more common in boys than in girls.

• By the age of 2 years, most children are dry during the day (if a toilet is nearby when they need it, and their clothing is easy to undo).
• By the age of 3 years, 3 out of every 4 children are dry most nights.
• By the age of 5 years, most children are dry at night. However, 1 out of every 5 children still wets the bed at least once a week.
• By the age of 10 years, about 1 out of every 10 children wets the bed several nights a week.
• By the age of 15 years, only 3 out of every 100 children are still wetting the bed several nights a week.

These facts and figures (from the Medical Journal of Australia 2005; 182:190–5) show that most children gradually grow out of bed-wetting, and it is certainly nothing to worry about in a child younger than 5 years. The medical term for bed-wetting is enuresis, and this is usually defined as wetting the bed at least three nights a week in a child over 5 years of age.

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