One in 50 teenagers still wet the bed and almost half of 19 year-olds who have the problem are wetting the bed every night, according to research published in the May issue of the urology journal BJUI International.
Professor Chung K Yeung from the Chinese University of Hong Kong teamed up with colleagues from the Prince of Wales Hospital to analyse the results of more than 16,500 questionnaires surveying children aged from five to 19.
He hopes that his findings will reassure parents of children with mild bed wetting problems, but stress the importance of seeking advice in severe cases, which can often be caused by underlying medical problems and continue into adulthood.
512 children – just over three per cent of those surveyed – reported night-time bedwetting and one in five of those also had daytime incontinence. 302 were boys and 210 were girls.
The researchers found that although bed wetting was less common as children got older, the percentage reporting severe problems increased with age.
Children and adolescents who wet the bed at night also showed a similar pattern when it came to daytime incontinence, with a higher percentage of problems reported in older age groups.
When the researchers looked in detail at the 512 children with bed wetting problems they found that:
* Mild bed wetting was much worse among younger children, with 58 per cent of five to ten year-olds and 18 per cent of 11-19 year-olds wetting the bed less than three times a week.
* But older children reported a higher level of severe problems, with 82 per cent of 11-19 year-olds wetting the bed more than three times a week, compared with 42 per cent of five to ten year-olds.
* Just over 16 per cent of five year-olds wet the bed, with boys (21 per cent) having almost twice as many problems as girls (11 per cent).
* By the age of 19, three per cent of boys and two per cent of girls were still wetting the bed.
* Just under a third of 11-19 year-old boys (32 per cent) also experienced daytime incontinence, almost double the 15 per cent recorded in the under ten age group.
* The figures for girls were lower but showed a similar trend, at 25.5 per cent for 11-19 year-olds and 12 per cent for girls under ten.
* Overall, 29 per cent of children aged 11-19 experienced daytime incontinence, compared with 14 cent of under tens.
“Bed wetting showed a general reduction as children got older” says Professor Yeung, who is also President of the International Children’s Continence Society. “However, this reduction was much greater in those with mild symptoms who wet the bed three or less times a week, compared to those with severe problems who were wetting the bed every night.
“Just over 14 per cent of five year-olds who wet the bed did so seven nights a week. By the age of 19, severe bed wetting accounted for over 48 per cent of teenagers who were still wetting the bed.”
21,000 questionnaires were distributed to 67 schools, with a greater emphasis on children over ten, and just under 79 per cent were returned by parents and children.
The average age of respondents was just under 14 and the largest number of responses were from teenagers aged 16-18. 24 per cent of the questionnaires concerned children under ten.
“Our findings challenge the myth that bedwetting will always get better and disappear as the child gets older” says Professor Yeung.
“In 2004 we published findings of a previous study in BJU International that showed that adults showed no significant decrease in bed wetting problems from the age of 10 to 40.
“These latest findings underline the importance of seeking help for children with severe bed wetting problems, especially if they continue into adolescence. If these individuals are left untreated, the evidence suggests that they will continue to experience ongoing problems when they become adults.”
From Blackwell Publishing
i admier almost evry one here
dont you love it when u dream, your in the toilet peeing and the warmness wakes you the hell up and you quickly realise your peeing in your sleep LOL
I was four when i started wetting the bed, it was triggered by my mum and dad splitting up then my mum found a new man and he moved in right away. My mum took me to the hospital because it carried on for so long, they gave me a buzzer that didn’t work they gave me a pill that didn’t work and now I’m 17 and still wetting the bed I hate it so much. My family think I don’t care and are starting to get frustrated as it has been going on for so long I just want it to end and don’t know what else to do. I have missed out on so much on my childhood because i was bed wetting and too embrassed to stay anywhere else rather than my own house I’ve also tried setting an alarm in the middle of the night to get me up but that hasn’t worked either:( I just need some advice some help.
I don’t drink anything after dinner except a little bit of water, and go to the bathroom a few times before bed
Girl, I’m in the same situation.I’m 26 years old, from Portugal and I started wet the bed an year ago because of ,y very stressfull job.
The doctors weren’t able to get me any soluction so, in order to don’t wet the bed itself i just started to wear adult diapers.
To avoid wetting the sheets is the best solution.
Best Regards,
Pedro.
mail me to patricia_7287@hotmail.com if you read this
Dont you think you could just wear diapers?
I am in the same situation as you do. I am 17 and I ‘ve been wetting the bed since I can remember, (I was about 3-5 years old when it started). It happens at really random occations, sometimes, I could go on for two months without wetting the bed, sometimes it would happen 3 times in a week. I’ve gone to the doctor, I also had a urine test, and they also checked my bladder for any infection but they didn’t find any. My doctor told me that I could go on for the rest of life with this condition which absolutely sucks and upsets me. However, somehow, I figured that it may possibly be stress related, I’ve figured that when I have arguments at home especially with my Dad, I often wet the bed. When I have so much anxiety, it also happens and the more I worry about it, the more it occurs. What I do is make sure I go to the toilet atleast twice before I go to bed, I also try not to drink any beverages an hour before I go to bed unless necessary. And sweetie, try not to worry about it as much. At then end of each day, say to yourself that it won’t happen and next thing you know, thenumber instances might lessen. Honey, you’re not on your own. I share the same problem, remember that.
Where do you get a monitor for it?
hi i am 19 years old and still wet the bed every single night i hate it i wish i would grow out of it already i want to know if there is a pill i can take or something i can eat i don’t think stress causes mine.I also use Tena pads not cloth dipers they work well for me, you can buy them at Wal-Mart. well hope this helps?????
I hate wettin the bed its so stressful ecspecily when your a teen. I feel like I’m so alone. I can’t tell any one outside of my family because I’m positive it’ll spread around and ill be shunned at school. And I hate when I wake up and my parents are yelling at me and asking me why I’m still wettin at this age. And I tried everthing to stop but It doesn’t work.i can’t help that I’m a deep sleeper. Any advice.(cry cry)
for all you bedwetters who wear cloth diapers,velcro works real well to fasten your diaper on with.my mom was using regular diaper pins with my diaper and it was a hassle keeping track of them,and worrying about them comming unsnapped and poking me.she bought velcro and sewed it on my diapers and now it is a lot better.also i agree with katie and jannelle and think its unfair that parents use cloth diapers and plastic pants on their daughters because they feel its more appropriate.
im 20. all of you guys and girls out there who are complaining because your mom is changing you at night or getting you ready for bed, you should be thankful. i started wetting the bed in grade 8. i went to private school, so leaving an elementary school with a class of 11 and being put into a high school class of 56 was very stressful. i got myself goodnites right away. i new i needed them, but i was so embarassed that i never told anyone. until recently no one knew. not even my own family. i hid it very well but i never had anyone who understood. i beat myself up about it and let myself feel bad for failing at something that in my mind even little kids could do. while it has gotten better over the years and i hope and pray that it’ll stop before i marry my beautiful and understanding girl friend so that i dont have to get into bed with my wife and have to wear a diaper for fear that ill wet the bed, i highly doubt that it will stop that soon. so if you think that having your mom know and want to do something about it is bad, think of what it would be like if you felt you had to hide it from everyone and couldnt talk about it to anyone at all. and as a little side note, if and when you find a boyfriend/girlfriend, tell them! not right off the bat of course, but after a few weeks, if they say they love you, then tell them the first time they say it. if they truly love you, theyll tell you it wont matter like my current girlfriend did when i told her what seems like years ago. not like my ex who turned and ran when she found out. anyone who views you as different in a bad way or as something thats weird, they arent worth the time.
so, if your 11, 12, 13, or even 18 and your worried that your friends will find out that you wet the bed, dont! because if they are truly your friends, theyll offer to have a sleep over at your house so that your more comfortable. or theyll do something else to make it easier. anyone who makes fun of you has no sense of humility. and has no idea what its like to be afraid to go to sleep at night. and not cuz of monsters, but because of the fact that if you go to sleep, that means you have to wake up…
and as “M” said above, we’re all brothers and sisters here. so to all of you, you have my complete and total understanding of what youre going thru.
hi im 17 thinking of joing the air force and still wet the bed at least 3 times a week i feel so alone, when my friends ask for me to sleep over thier house im so nervous, i cant even go to a night party at a friends house in fear i would be made fun of. is there anyone who can help me without alerting my parents i am doing this. plus i feel ashamed my grandma asks me once a week if i was dry and i feel so embarrassed. could it be cause i have an overactive bladder?
that could very well be the problem. it depends on how long this has happened. since you said that you STILL do, im assuming it has for a while. so it could be any number of things. but not telling anyone is not the answer. im assuming you must be using some sort of protection seeing as youve been able to hide it. if so, just tell your friends. like ive said before, anyone who is truly your friend wont be stupid about it. just tell them bluntly. as in “hey, i have a problem at night with wetting the bed and because of that i have to wear ____ to bed.” make sure their fine with it and it wont be a problem. also, tell your parents. it could be any number of harmless things that is causing this, but you should still have it looked into. only because it could also be something as serious as a tumor in your urinary tract.
sorry, that above post was from me, not anonymous lol.
hi im 13 and i still wet my bed but im too afraid to tell even my real friends because theres this girl thats always trying to embarress me so i dont want be made fun of. what should i do!
can any of you bedwetting girls help me?i am putting my bedwetting 14 year daughter back into cloth diapers and plastic pants at night.i dont know which type of plastic pants to buy for her-pull on or snap on.has any had experience with the snap on kind?
well, i may not be a girl, and im no expert on plastic pants, but from someone who has been fourteen and wetting the bed, perhaps you should try asking her what she would be more comfortable in. i’m sure she wouldnt want to go to a sleep over or a party and have to bring cloth diapers along. you may want to consider buying goodnites or even depends. i would recommend depends. they work as good or even better than any cloth diaper, are more comfortable, and if your daughter want to go to a sleep over, they are a lot easier to “keep to yourself”.
Sorry Herman,but I will not help destroy the environment nor waist all that money on disposable diapers when thicker cotton underpants covered with plastic pants are better.
Well dont tell the military. My son just got denied entrance to the military because of bed wetting until he was 14. He had high enough test scores to have any job offered but he wont be serving our country.
theres actually a rather reasonable way to explain that. while saying that it is because he wet the bed might be a little insensitive, a better wat to put it is that wetting the bed can be a good indicator of two different things. one would be a possible medical condition. but a test would clear that up pretty quick. however, if that was never the case, then your son probly has a lower level of stress tolerance. theres no test for it. but trust me, when you have a group of taliban rebels firing bullets at you and youre being counted on the cover someones back, theres no time for you to go change cuz you didnt realize the stress would cause an accident. and think of that happening while a drill sergeant is yelling in his face. im pretty sure knowing that he offered to serve his country should be good enough. nobody said he HAD to go jump in front of bullets for his country. but he offered up his life for his country. that already makes him a hero.
Well said.
dan,i am a girl 19 and had a similiar experience like yours when i was 14.i got asked to be the junior bride in my neices wedding.i was thrilled at the time and a little apprenhsive as i had never been in a wedding.as the day got closer i started getting nervous and a few nights before the wedding i wet the bed a few times.at the rehearsal the friday night before the wedding i flubbed up walking down the aisle and got so nervous i wet my pants there in the church.that morning when we got to the church my neice told my mom to take me to the nursery and put diapers and rubberpants on me to wear under my dress.i reluctantly went there with my mom and she took toddler cloth diapers and pinned them on me then put toddler rubberpants on me then we went back up to the bridal dressing room.i was so embarrassed being seen in the diapers and rubberpants by the other girls and women,i felt really stupid walking down the aisle to the alter with the diaper and rubberpants on under my dress.my mom wouldnt let me take them off for the reception and dance.i was really pissed off at her!