Question
How should I deal with a five-year-old girl who occasionally wets the bed at night? What medications are good or what supplements should I use? I heard that it’s about strengthening the spleen, but is that right? If so, what are the medicines for strengthening the spleen?
Answer
Hello, bedwetting in children is known as enuresis. This refers to a child over the age of three who still cannot control their urination while asleep, resulting in unintentional bedwetting. Chronic enuresis can make children feel weak and affect their physical health and intellectual development, and frequent bedwetting can also cause trouble for the family. There are generally two types of conditions for child enuresis: functional and organic. Most cases of bedwetting are functional, caused by a functional disorder of the higher brain cortex. Common causes include mental factors such as excessive fatigue, stress, sudden fright, fear and shyness, and not adapting to a new environment from an early age, as well as not forming the habit of nighttime urination. In rare cases, enuresis is organic, often due to conditions such as spina bifida, spinal meningitis, spinal injury, epilepsy, developmental disorders of the brain, a small bladder capacity, urinary tract infections, bladder stones, phimosis, anal fissure, pinworm infection, etc. For organic diseases, it is important to seek medical treatment promptly. Once the disease is cured, enuresis will also be cured. For functional enuresis, it is completely treatable. Here are a few points to note: ① Parents should correctly deal with their child’s enuresis. Bedwetting is unintentional, so parents should show sympathy, care, and help rather than beat or despise their children. ② Remove mental stress. After the age of three, children begin to understand more, so parents should persuade and comfort their children so that they can gradually form a habit of nighttime urination without waking up. ③ Encourage children to urinate before going to bed and after waking up in the morning. ④ Maintain a comfortable and quiet environment for children to sleep in at night. ⑤ Avoid giving children too much coffee or other stimulating beverages before going to bed. ⑥ It is also important to check for any underlying medical conditions that may cause enuresis and treat them accordingly.