TOILET TRAINING STUDY REVEALS SURPRISING FINDINGS
CHICAGO--The first large-scale study in 30 years on toilet training reveals one in five toddlers use a potty chair or toilet to urinate but not for bowel movements. The studys findings are in the January issue of Pediatrics, the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
A researcher from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, studied 482 healthy toddlers between 18 and 30 months of age. Parents were questioned every 6 months about their childs toilet training behavior until the child was fully trained. The study found 106 children used a potty chair or toilet to urinate but not to defecate for at least one month. Of the 106 children refusing to stool in a toilet, 29 requested pediatrician intervention because of severe stool withholding or because the child still was not fully trained by 3.5 years old. Interrupting toilet training and having 28 of these children return to diapers resulted in 25 children using the toilet for bowel movements within 3 months. Other study findings reveal:
* Four percent of the children were potty trained by age 2; 22 percent by 2.5; 60 percent by age 3; 88 percent by 3.5 and 2 percent were still not trained at 4 years old.
* Boys tend to train later than girls. Forty-eight percent of boys were not trained until after 3 years old compared to 30 percent of girls.
* Fifty-nine percent of boys were at least 2 years old when introduced to toilet training compared to 41 percent of girls.
* The age at which a child was toilet trained was not associated with the childs behavior score, whether he or she attended day care, had siblings or a mother who worked.
In a related study, researchers from University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia found children refusing to move their bowels in a potty chair or toilet do not have more behavior problems than children who are toilet trained.
EDITORS NOTE: This study was published in the peer-reviewed, scientific journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, but does not necessarily reflect the policies or opinions of the Academy. To receive full text of this study, please contact the Division of Public Relations at 847/981-7877 or e-mail the division at [email protected] and ask for C54. The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 51,000 pediatricians dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.
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