Bedwetting, also called nocturnal enuresis, is defined as persistent, involuntary urination while sleeping without any evidence of abnormality in the urinary system. A widely accepted view is that the child has failed to learn to awaken to the bladder pressure and volume before the bladder automatically empties. Keep in mind it is your nervous system that relays the information from the bladder to the brain. Although nocturnal enuresis is common during the first few years after toilet training, most children do outgrow bed-wetting. It generally becomes a problem when the child is 5 or older and has bladder control during the day but urinates in his/her bed at night.
Two key muscles control the emptying of the bladder. Their technical names are the detrusor and trigone muscles. Nerves that exit the spinal column in the lower back and sacrum control these muscles.
During the early years of life, the sacrum has five separate segments. Later, they fuse together to form the triangular-shaped bone that adults have at the base of the spine. If these segments misalign (falling, learning to walk, ride a bike, etc.) they may compromise nerves that are responsible for bladder function.
We look for these sometimes subtle misalignments during our examination. When these misalignments are reduced with safe and natural chiropractic adjustments, nervous system control and regulation of the bladder may often be restored. Chiropractic offers bedwetters a drug-free and all-natural approach to reduce, or even eliminate, the incidence of bedwetting.
Several recent studies have shown the benefits of chiropractic care for children suffering from bedwetting. Several studies published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics showed marked improvement in children with this problem over children who did not receive chiropractic care.
In one study 171 children suffering with enuresis averaged 7 nights of bed wetting per week prior to the study. After the children were given some initial chiropractic care the average child reduced the number of “wet” nights to 4 nights per week. A full 25% of the children receiving chiropractic showed a 50% reduction in wet nights.
As children learn to walk and play it is inevitable that there will be some falls. It is realistic for kids to develop subluxations as a result. If these subluxations appear in an area that aggravates the nerves supplying the bladder (or the associated muscles), chiropractic may be the answer to their bed-wetting. Georgia Clinic of Chiropractic (Augusta, GA) has helped many children suffering from bedwetting–If your child has a bedwetting condition, we may be able to help. Feel free to call our office to schedule a complimentary consultation, so that you and your child can sit down and discuss your child’s specific condition and what we can do to help.
Georgia Clinic of Chiropractic is conveniently located off Furys Ferry Rd in Martinez, Georgia and provides quality chiropractic care to the Augusta, Martinez, and Evans communities. Visit our main website at www.georgia-clinic.com. To schedule an appointment, call (706) 814-5053 or use our online form to schedule online.
The Georgia Clinic of Chiropractic Blog is written by Dr. Mark Huntsman.
