It’s stressful for everyone involved when a child continues to wet the bed beyond the expected time frame, but it’s important to stay calm and in control.
If a child’s made to feel guilty, or at fault, it’s only going to make it harder for the body to adjust to the necessary changes at night.
It’s not at all uncommon. 15% of five-year-olds continue wetting the bed, and a small amount will have trouble with bedwetting up to the age of ten.
Pull ups for slightly older children are the perfect way to help both parents and children cope with these trying times until nature takes its course.
That’s why we’re going to be discussing five of the best pull ups for older bedwetters.
We’ll cover various age ranges and styles, all in the name of making this transitory stage as easy on everyone as possible.
We’ll even have a look at an in-depth buyer’s guide and brief FAQ section just to be sure you know exactly what you’re looking for.
The Best Pull-Ups for Older Bedwetters
Need Something Now?
Not to worry. Here’s our top pick all the way up here.
OUR TOP PICK
These disposable pull ups are specially designed for children that weigh between 68- 95lbs (30 and 43kg), but the extra stretchy elastic fit waistband will probably fit even larger children without causing any discomfort.
If you’re unsure about weights, the XL size should fit boys up to the age of 12.
With five layers of absorbent material and double leg barriers that stop any irritating leaks, these pullups offer around 40% more protection than the average diaper or pull up design.
This advanced layering system also provides some really effective odor control to make the cleanup process as easy as possible.
These ones are designed for boys, but Goodnites produce the same products for girls too. The main difference is the graphics they use for decoration.
You can choose between numerous designs when you buy Goodnites underwear. This particular pack can be purchased with a space theme, stripes, or Marvel superhero graphics sure to bring a smile to your child’s face.
They’re also a really affordable option for dealing with nocturnal enuresis. They come in packs of 34 so you’re covered for over a month with every pack you buy.
They’re designed to be as comfortable as possible without sacrificing absorption, and the layering system helps to distance the moisture from your child, leaving their skin happy and healthy.
If you are after a larger size, then the XL Version for size 14-20 kids (95-140lbs / 43-64kg) is available here. Be sure to check out the latest price.
Pros
- Five layers of absorbency perfect for heavy wetters
- The layers lock away the moisture to keep your child’s skin safe
- They’ll fit boys up to the age of 12
- They make the same products for girls
- They’re affordable
- One pack lasts longer than a month
- Comfortable underwear fit, stretchy waistband
- Offer 40% more protection than the average pullup
- Come with a wide variety of graphics
Cons
- Some customers say they’ve altered the design and their children find them less comfortable
EDITORS CHOICE
Our second pick is another fantastic pullup designed specifically for night times. These will help your little angel sleep well and dream their way through this turbulent time in their development.
Although there’s absolutely no need to be, children are often embarrassed to wet the bed after a certain age. They’re developing a need for privacy around the same time, so it’s important for their pull ups to be discreet.
The clothlike material used in the production of the UnderJams makes them feel like real underwear and completely stops any rubbing noises traditionally associated with nappies and pull ups.
This makes them great for giving your little bean sprout confidence at sleepovers or even just in the presence of their siblings. They’re also breathable and low waisted for a completely covert fit.
Under Jams have what they refer to as Night Lock technology, which serves the exact same purpose as the layering system of our top pick.
It transports the moisture to a more absorbent central layer and traps it there so your child isn’t woken by chapped skin or cold moisture.
These pull ups will fit children between 38 and 65lbs (17 and 29kg) which normally means they’ll be suitable for kids between the ages of 5 and 9, and they come in packs of 50.
Pros
- Ultra absorbent Night Lock core keeps your child’s skin and clothes dry
- Clothlike texture prevents giveaway noises
- Low waistband keeps them discreet
- Fits children up to 9 years of age
- Available for boys and girls
- Very breathable
- Affordable
- Comes in packs of 50
Cons
- No leg protectors to stop leaks
BEST VALUE
Our third pick is marketed to all ages, but we feel that they’re the perfect way to help the small percentage of children that continue wetting the bed beyond the age of 10.
Gentle elastics run through the majority of these pull ups that allow for a more figure-hugging fit, making them incredibly comfortable and discreet.
The skin smart fabric is infused with soothing extracts and antioxidants such as aloe, chamomile and vitamin E. This concoction of skin-kind substances will keep your child feeling fresh through a wet night.
Prevail have designed these pull ups with breathable zones to ensure they remain comfortable to wear over long periods of time, making them perfect for a good long sleep.
They're actually designed for daytime usage, but the fact they’re able to stop leaks over active periods means they’ll be more than enough to deal with nighttime incidents.
The Maxsorb gel technology is the thing that sucks up and locks away the moisture in this instance, leaving your child to sleep peacefully through the night.
They also feature an incredibly effective odor guard to help with the cleanup process.
Pros
- Absorbent gel lining locks in moisture and keeps skin feeling fresh
- Four-layer design offers loads of absorption
- Soft, silky material on the outside
- Elastic laced design for discreet fit
- Odor prevention
- Breathable zones keep them comfortable for long periods of time
- Skin-kind ingredients will leave your child’s skin healthier than before
- 88 to a pack
- Unisex design
Cons
- A little more expensive than our other picks
- Not suitable for 10 or below
- Not actually designed for nightwear
RUNNER UP
Our fourth pick comes from a giant of the industry so there’s no questioning the quality of these pullups. They’re designed specifically for helping your bundle of joy come to terms with their potty.
These pull ups have a few really great features. Firstly, the sides unfasten so you can easily adjust the waistband to give your toddler the most comfortable fit possible.
This also means you can remove them without worrying about removing shoes or getting them to lie down.
They come with a variety of charming Disney graphics that your children will absolutely love, but they’re not just decorative.
The design fades away to indicate that they’ve started to absorb moisture. So, no more interrogating your toddler, simply look at the opacity of the picture.
With a full coverage protection system that protects against leaks, and a highly absorbent layering system, you can sleep sound knowing that your toddler is doing the same.
These pull ups have quite a large price tag, but you get 99 in a pack, so it’s actually pretty fair. They’re the perfect pull ups to give your child that big kid confidence that will help them conquer the potty.
Pros
- Detachable sides for easy adjustments to waistband
- You can remove them while your toddler is stood up
- They come with great Disney graphics
- Design fades to indicate moisture absorption
- Leak protection
- Highly absorbent
- Come in packs of 99
- Perfect to help your child get to grips with potties and toilets
Cons
- Quite expensive per pack
- Not suitable for children over the age of 5
RUNNER UP
Our fifth and final pull up is a lesser-known product with both your child and the planet’s wellbeing at its heart.
These are suitable for children between 4 and 7 years old, so if the bedwetting proceeds through the toddling phase, you can shift straight over to these and you’re set for a while.
They have an ultra-absorbent core that siphons harmful moisture away to reduce the development of chapped and sore skin.
This means your child’s sleep will remain unbroken, allowing them to wake up fully charged and raring to go in the morning.
It also means they won’t need to wake you in the middle of the night to help with any changes.
They’re a really discreet design made to look like normal underwear, so your child needn’t be embarrassed when wearing them.
They come with wonderful nordic designs and colors printed on them to make them feel even less like pull ups.
The standout feature of these pull ups is the fact they’re completely eco-friendly, which also means you don’t have to worry about harmful chemicals affecting your child’s health.
They’re made without parabens or harmful chemicals, and they’re fully biodegradable.
They’re quite a bit more expensive than a lot of the other popular brands, which may put some people off, but if you want to do your part for the planet, this is a good place to start.
Pros
- Completely eco-friendly production and design
- Super absorbent core keeps moisture centralized to keep pajamas and skin dry
- Odor control system makes cleanups more manageable
- Specifically designed for older children between 4 and 7 years old
- Come with lovely nordic graphics
- Discreet and natural fit
- They look like normal underwear
Cons
- You only get 10 in a pack
- Most expensive option on our list
- Some customers claimed there wasn’t enough leak protection
Buyer’s Guide
It can be difficult shopping for products that don’t have much of a mainstream commercial presence.
It’s already a stressful situation, and spending hours trawling through the internet and reading every product down a supermarket aisle can make it all that much worse.
So, to make the process more bearable, we’ve composed this buyer’s guide with all the things we considered when choosing our products to review.
Budget
A child can grow out of bedwetting at any point with no warning.
It could be tomorrow, it could be five years from now, so it’s advisable to consider the cost of pull ups for older children, to help with your long term budgeting.
Size
The key consideration here is size. It’s the reason you need to move onto a different product. Your child is in a perpetual growth spurt.
Their toes are crashing into the ends of shoes and their clothes are bursting at the seams as though they’re some sort of tiny Incredible Hulk.
It can be hard finding the right size as they’re advertised toward the weight of a child, rather than their age.
Here are a few helpful weight to age conversions to keep you in the know.
- 4 years = 36lbs/16.3kg
- 8 years = 56.5lbs/25.6kg
- 10 years = 70.5lbs/32kg
- 12 years = 88lbs/39.9kg
Comfort
Pull ups for older bedwetters absolutely must be comfortable to wear.
If they’re keeping your child awake all night, chafing and itching, the lack of sleep can have a severe effect on their health and personality.
Absorbency
Some pull ups will be more absorbent than others. It’s hard to know which is which as most companies will advertise that their product has optimal absorbency.
It’s not always a bad thing for a pullup to be less absorbent. If your child isn’t much of a heavy wetter, you can settle for something more lightweight and thinline.
Whatever your situation is, the way the pullups deal with moisture needs to be the same.
The moisture has to be absorbed into a central layer and kept there, keeping your child’s skin safe and dry, leaving them to their sleep, and keeping their pajamas dry too.
Leak Protection
A lot of pull ups simply rely on their absorbency to stop leaks, but it’s not always enough, especially if your child is a heavy wetter.
The most watertight products have specialized features to help prevent leaks.
Our number one pick, for instance, has leg guards and a five-layer design.
Discretion
It’s important to consider how someone feels when wearing pull ups as an older child. They’re just developing a need for independence and privacy, and their social life is blooming.
They may prefer a discreet product over a traditional design.
Social events can be a mortifying experience for an older child that suffers from nocturnal enuresis. Finding a discreet pull up will help them relax and have a good time.
Even if a child is unaware others stop wetting the bed earlier, if they’re seen by others to be wearing them, it could incite bullying.
Noise
Nappies and some pull ups have a distinctive noise when the fabric moves or rubs against other materials.
This is a dead giveaway that should be avoided. Products that use clothlike materials are often completely silent.
Waistline
It’s common for pull ups to have a high waisted fit for added security and comfort; however, this makes them highly visible.
A low waisted design stays beneath the pajamas so they can’t be seen.
Thinline
A discreet pull up needs to fit close to the skin in order to look like regular underwear.
This means that bulky nappy-style products are completely out of the question.
Odor Control
All the best pull ups will have some form of odor control, but it’s especially pertinent when shopping for discretionary products.
The smell of urine can be quite strong at times, so if your child wishes to wear pull ups surreptitiously, try and garner an understanding of how the odor reduction works and if it works well.
Health and Safety
Children
Let’s finish with the most important thing to take note of: your child’s health.
Pull ups will use a myriad of different substances to help soothe skin, increase absorbency, and keep your child dry and well.
While this is well-intentioned, your child may well be allergic to some of the ingredients. Keep a close eye on everything used to create the pull ups to avoid this.
Environment
Disposable diapers and pull ups account for 3.5 million tons of waste a year, and some of them contain harmful chemicals such as toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene that can leach into the ground.
Cloth based products require far less energy to make, are reusable, and harbor few to no harmful chemicals. If you’re serious about doing your bit for planet earth, you may want to consider eco-friendly options.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Do pull ups prolong bedwetting?
Some say that they provide a child with less incentive to get up and go to the potty or toilet if they’re tired, but these people are assuming the child has a choice in the matter.
Nocturnal enuresis is defined by the involuntary nature of the event. It’s a natural occurrence, not a premeditated decision of the child.
If you feel your child is using the pull ups as an excuse not to get up at night, it’s best to try and instill the importance of proper toilet or potty use.
At what age should I be worried about bedwetting?
It might be worth consulting a doctor if your child continues to wet the bed after the age of 7, but only to ascertain whether there are underlying factors contributing to the issue.
If there aren’t, your child should outgrow it at some point.
Summing Up
The bedwetting phase can be a long and challenging time, but one of these products should suit any situation and help to make it more bearable for parents and children.
Remember, one day, you and your child are going to wake up after a long night of lovely sleep and realize it’s all come to an end.
Neither of you will have to worry about it ever again, and eventually, it will all just feel like a bad dream so vague and distant, you hardly remember it.
