Common bedwetting questions
There are a number of reasons for bedwetting. Understanding the possible causes can help reassure both you and your child that bedwetting is a common issue and not something your child has control over.
Stopping drinks after 4pm is not a good idea as it is important to keep your child well hydrated throughout the day and evening. This is for your child’s general health and the health of their bladder.
Drinking good levels of water enables the bladder to reach its full capacity (when you get the sensation of fullness). If you drink less your bladder "adapts" by holding less before that fullness sensation.
The kidneys also adapt if you don’t drink enough by reabsorbing fluid - causing the urine to become more concentrated. This in turn can "irritate" the bladder – and also contribute to bedwetting.
So, make sure your child has plenty to drink throughout the day. National Institute for Health and Excellence (NICE) guidelines recommend between 1,000 – 1,400 mls a day for 4-8 year olds, about 6-8 glasses).
No, there is no evidence that this helps and it might hinder.
Most parents try this method at some point, as lifting their child from sleep and taking them to the toilet seems like a natural thing to do: to stop, or at least control, the bedwetting.
However, what it does is reinforce to the child that they can urinate when they are asleep. This of course does not help them to make that important connection between the bladder and the brain, so that they wake up or “hold-on” to the sensation of a full bladder.
Sleepovers do not have to be avoided because of bedwetting episodes. Discuss with your son a strategy that he would feel comfortable with; for example, sharing the situation with the other child's parents and taking supplies of absorbent sleepwear such as DryNites® Pyjama Pants.
Work out how your son can get easy access to the toilet (many children are afraid of the dark) and how he would deal with any wet sleepwear should he have an accident. It’s also a good idea to have a conversation with the host parents beforehand. That way, they can let your son know where the bin is if he needs to dispose of any wet sleepwear during the night.
"My 3 year old has been potty trained for over a year. She was dry at night also during this time and would wake up to go if she needed. In the past two - three months she now wets every night.
We have bought DryNites® for her, she doesn't want to wear them but as she is wetting the bed up to 3 times a night we have to.
I don't give them drinks before bed (she has 2 older sisters) we bought a new bed to try and encourage her but I'm not sure what to do. I don't want to push her but as she was dry for so long before I'm not sure how to get her back.
There haven't been any major problems that I can think of. Any help or tips would be greatly appreciated."
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It does sometimes happen that children of your daughter’s age—and even older—become dry at night, then start wetting again.
We don’t know why this happens, but it is due to the complex “skill” of night-time dryness not yet being fully established. It sounds as if you are doing all the right things—to reassure and gently encourage her.
Make sure that she drinks well during the day (about 6 glasses of water-based fluids) and continue to make bed-time a positive experience with a cuddle and night-time story. This is likely to right itself quite naturally.
"Hi,
My daughter is 6, and although dry day and night since the age of 2, when she went up to yr 1 at school we started to get the occasional wet bed. She is a generally happy child, she doesn't have any obvious problems at school.
We can go for weeks completely dry and then this week we've had 2 instances of wetting. I'm obviously worried about this and wondered if it's common for this to happen, or could there be something else going on.
We've seen a GP but they weren't very helpful unfortunately. I look forward to your reply."
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It is not uncommon for children of your daughter’s age to have the occasional wet bed; this may be the result of a particular worry or being tired—or often for no apparent reason. It just means that her ability to “hold –on” to a full bladder at night (or to wake and use the toilet) isn’t yet fully “secure”.
This should, in time, sort itself out naturally. We are sure that you are reassuring her (as we hope that we are reassuring you!) that many other children will be in the same position – and that it is not something that your daughter has control over.
Wetting the bed as an older child or teenager can be incredibly frustrating for them. Even more so when it’s inconsistent, so you don’t know how or when to prepare for a night-time accident.
Wearing a nappy or “diaper” can help absorb some of the wetness at night, but they are not designed to be worn all the way through the night—they will need to change, and they could leak anyway if they get too full.
DryNites® Pyjama Pants for Teen Boys and Teen Girls are specially designed to be super absorbent, providing unbeatable night-time protection so you can sleep right through, and wake up, worry-free. And less worry means they’ll feel more relaxed in their bedtime routine, which can help them better manage their bedwetting too.
DryNites clinical study was a multicentre, parallel, randomized controlled trial (NCT04620356). Patients were enrolled from 7 European centres between 2020-2023.
Patients were previously-untreated children aged 4–8 years with 7/7 wet nights per week and no other symptoms, who had used absorbent pants for at least 6 months prior to the study. For further information please reach out to our consumer services team: UK - 0800 085 8189, ROI - 1800 946 659.
Yes, this is based on NielsenIQ RMS data for the Bedwetting / Youth pants (Kimberly-Clark defined) for the 12-month period ending December 2022 for the sum of United Kingdom, France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Portugal and Ireland (Copyright © 2022, Nielsen Consumer LL).
Bedwetting Pants
DryNites® Pyjama Pants are bedwetting training pants, also known as bedwetting pyjama pants. They are designed to help kids who are dry during the day, but having accidents at night, manage their bedwetting. All while keeping them dry, rested, and ready to wake up awesome!
Some concerned parents have been told by people that if their child feels the wet pyjamas and sheets they might stop wetting the bed.
There is no evidence to suggest that this is true. Wearing DryNites® Pyjama Pants won’t cure your child’s night wetting, but it will help you both manage the phase with discretion and confidence.
DryNites® Pyjama Pants not only help children who wet the bed get a good night’s sleep, they help them maintain a sense of privacy and boost their confidence. They make managing bedwetting easier for you as well, by minimising night time disruptions and wet sheets.
DryNites® Pyjama Pants’ absorbent padding, waistband, body side liner and outside cover are all important parts of how DryNites® work.
Firstly, super absorbent padding pulls in fluid to provide unbeatable night-time protection. The body side liner then pulls in fluid and helps provide a layer of protection for your child's skin.
The waistband, inside flap and leg elastics provide a snug fit while keeping wetness in. The outside cover also helps keep wetness in, just in case.
Mums and dads, parents and guardians regularly tell us how good DryNites® Pyjama Pants are for helping their child manage bedwetting. But don’t just take our word for it—here’s what they had to say
DryNites® Pyjama Pants are available in three sizes:
No, DryNites® are not nappies, and they aren’t “better” either—they are used for different things than nappies.
Nappy pants are designed to allow you to change a child without having to lie them down. They are usually worn up until the potty training stage. DryNites® Pyjama Pants are worn by kids at night to help them manage night-time accidents, or bedwetting.
The difference between DryNites® and nappies is simple: nappies are designed to be worn up until the potty training phase, while DryNites® are to manage bedwetting.
Pull-Ups® are designed for potty training: they have specific features like a learning liner that lets kids feel a brief sensation of wetness—an important indicator when potty training.
DryNites® are for children who are already dry during the day, but wet the bed at night. They are more absorbent and discreet, something that’s especially important for older children.
DryNites® Pyjama Pants can hold up to 500ml of liquid. The reason they can hold so much is because of how absorbent they are. Each Pyjama Pant is made with five layers of unbeatable protection, and is super absorbent to make sure your child can stay dry at night and wake up awesome.
DryNites® Pyjama Pants are disposable bedwetting pants, designed to help your child manage the bedwetting phase.
Once your child has used their DryNites® Pyjama Pants, simply put them in the waste bin, or in a bag to then go in the waste bin.
- Buy DryNites® Girls Pyjama Pants Age 3-4
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- Buy DryNites® Boys Pyjama Pants Age 4-7
- Buy DryNites® Girls Pyjama Pants Age 8-15
- Buy DryNites® Boys Pyjama Pants Age 8-15
You can also find our Pyjama Pants in-store via our retail partners, including Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Boots, and Superdrug.
Bed Mats
DryNites® Bed Mats are absorbent bed pads for toddlers, older children and teens. You may also have heard them described as “bed mattress protectors”. DryNites® Bed Mats are designed to provide extra protection for overnight confidence.
DryNites® Bed Mats are made to be as soft and as quiet as possible to prevent any unwanted rustling in the night, whilst also promoting a more restful sleep.
DryNites® Bed Mats are highly absorbent with waterproof backing. This means each Bed Mat absorbs any night-time accidents, while the waterproof backing makes sure the accident is absorbed fully, and protects your child’s mattress for up to 12 hours.
DryNites® Bed Mats are not waterproof, as this would mean any night-time accidents would be repelled rather than absorbed. That’s not going to help anyone sleep better!
DryNites® Bed Mats are not washable, as they are designed to absorb any night-time accidents. If they are washed, the materials would likely break down and could cause damage to your washing machine.
Plus, since our Bed Mats are super absorbent, they will naturally absorb any liquid. So if you did wash it, the best you’d get would be an even fuller Bed Mat!
Huggies® DryNites® Bed Mats measure 18x88cm to fit across a single-size bed. Each mat is made with soft, quiet material that helps your child sleep comfortably.
To use DryNites® Bed Mats, simply peel-off the adhesive back sheet and lay it flat on the mattress (on top of the mattress sheet), sticky-side down.
There’s no need to change our bed mats overnight, as they give 12 hours of night-time protection. The next morning, if your child has had an accident, simply remove the bed mat and dispose of it in the waste bin. For the next night, you then just need to use a new DryNites® Bed Mat.
DryNites® Bed Mats are disposable bed mats, or mattress protectors. with a Stick and Stay Put feature which keeps them in place on the mattress, throughout the night.
Our Bed Mats give up to 12 hours of night-time protection. There’s no need to change sheets—or the mat—if your child does have a night-time accident. Each highly absorbent bed mat comes with waterproof backing, so once it’s been used, all you need to do is dispose of it in the morning, straight in the waste bin.
You can also find our Bed Mats in-store via our retail partners, including Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Boots, and Superdrug.
