ENURESIS is the medical term for bed-wetting which is the habitual and involuntary discharge of urine on bed when sleeping. Children usually acquire the ability to control the urinary bladder within the age of 4 to 5 years. But sometimes bed-wetting occur beyond these early childhood age-extending up to early adulthood. The habitual act of urinating in bed, especially when sleeping or night incontinence may also occur in adults and this could be due to a long standing pathological problems like diabetes mellitus, genitourinary tract infections, weakness of the bladder due to traumatic injuries, etc. Though, there are numerous natural remedies that could be used in helping adults with enuresis, but our main focus in this write-up is the bed-wetting problem that is very common among children and teenagers.

The main factor responsible for bed wetting is not fully understood, however, it has been observed that:

1) In some cases, it might just be one of those childhood experiences that could be out grown with time; bed wetting in some teenagers are known to stop spontaneously.

2) Bed-wetting could be due to psychological factors, such as, general nervousness, unhappiness and fear of the parents especially the father, scolding a child with the problem of bed-wetting, makes the condition worse.

3) Stress, undue mental strain due to excessive school work, excessive nervous excitement, insufficient rest, etc, may induce a kind of dreaming about using the toilet when some children are deep asleep.

4) Malnourishment, lack of nutrients like calcium, magnesium and food allergies, may give rise to bed-wetting.

5) Late night meals, flatulence (gas), constipation. Intestinal worms excessive liquid intake before bed time, may put pressure on the urinary bladder - thus causing bed wetting at night.

6) The intake of soft drinks, teas, refined foods with colour additives or the foods that are strongly flavoured with spices could cause bladder irritation in children and bladder irritation results in involuntary emission of urine while sleeping at night.

7) In some cases, bedwetting could have hereditary tendencies, due to small bladder that could not hold urine for a long time or it could also be related to some structural defects in the urinary bladder.

(A) Remedies for enuresis:

a) The child should not be scolded for this may exacerbate the problem.

b) The child should be free from all undue mental, nervous and physical strain. Plenty of rest should be encouraged.

c) Sleeping on the side, should be encouraged, sleeping on the back or stomach should not be allowed since this could result in bedwetting or sometimes dreaming about using the toilet.

d) Excessive liquid intake before bed time should be discouraged.

B) (I) Massaging the lower abdomen, the entire spinal column and the kidney regions with warm olive oil before bed time is one of the effective physical remedies in some cases of childhood enuresis.

(ii) A daily alternate hot and cold water sitz bath or only cold water sitz bath helps in toxifying and strengthening the urinary bladder. It is recommended in all cases of bedwetting, even in adults, Yarrow (Achillea millefolium), St. John’s wort (Hypericum perforatum) Horsetail (Equisetum arvense), mango leaves, etc are some of the herbs that could be made into decoction and used for herbal sitz bath.

C (I) A few days (up to 3 days) of mono-fruit diet - using water melon, apple, citrus fruits, banana, and vegetables like carrot, cucumber, cabbage, etc, is a helpful remedy. During the fasting period a warm water enema will help prevent constipation, and relieve the bladder of pressure that could result in bedwetting.

(ii) The oral intake of 1 to 2 spoonful of pure honey or mixed with an infusion of fresh sweet corn at bed time helps in checking bedwetting in children.

D) A normal herbal infusion (tea) made from the following herbs are effective in curing or modifying bedwetting:

1) Cornsilk - a well known remedy for bedwetting.

2) Buchu-strengthens the urinary bladder.

3) Lady’s mantle - highly reputed for checking enuresis in adults,.

4) A mixture of plantain, St. John’s wort with or without Yarrow is an excellent remedy. Other herbs include horsetail, Goldenseal root, uva ursi, fennel seeds, parsley, etc. A cup of the infusion could be taken up to 3 times daily.