Proper Toilet Training Can Influence Children's Independence

Toilet training means training children to recognize body signals for small springs and bowel movements. This also means training children to use the toilet properly and at the right time. (Unsplash)

JAKARTA 'Toilet training can be a challenging moment, both for parents and children. However, delaying the training toilet can increase the risk of disease spread, including diarrhea and hepatitis A, and affect children's independence.

The Indonesian Pediatrician Association (IDAI) emphasizes the importance of starting a toilet training in children, although this process is recognized by many people that it will not be easy. IDAI Development Work Unit (UKK) member dr. Meitha P.E. Togas said that the timeliness of implementation is one of the keys to the success of undergoing a toilet training for children, and parents have an important role to play for it.

Delays in starting the training toilet not only increase the risk of disease spread, but also can potentially cause stress for families and the environment such as child care and school.

"Padatoilet training yang tertunda, anak akan lebih mudah menolak toilet training, sehingga menyebabkan penolakan untuk urit uris luar dan bisa terjadi konstipasi, juga masalah-masalah pencapaian dan perhatihan kontrol tubur," kata Meitha dalam diskusi daring IDAI, Selasa (24/12/2024).

Citing Sttanford Medicine Children's Health, toilet training means training children to recognize body signals for urine and bowel movements. This also means training children to use the toilet properly and at the right time. Parental assistance is needed intensively in the training process.

There is no definite age when children should start a toilet training, but what is certain is that this should start when the child shows signs that he is ready to do it. If parents force a toilet training before the child is ready, this can be a very tiring process for both the parent and the child.

The ability to control the gut and bladder muscles comes along with the right growth and development, said Sttanford Medicine Children Health.

Children develop at different speeds. Children under the age of 12 months have no control over the bladder or intestine movement. Control that children aged 12 months to 18 months is also very limited.

Most children have no control over the movements of the intestines and bladder until the age of 24-30 months, while the average age for toilet training is 27 months.

Meanwhile, Meitha P.E. Togas said, training using toilets can be done when children are 12-36 months old. The reason is, at that age children are generally exploring the environment.

In addition, at the age of 24 months, Meitha said, children usually can talk, understand conversations, and communicate with adults. The cognitive and emotional ability needed to undergo a toilet training has grown at the age of 18-30 months.

"From some areas, it is said that the average age of children without autism to be trained in toilet training is at the age of 2 years and 6 months. It is said that the toilet training during the day is effective when children experience less than four deaths per week and there is 98 percent of children in the United States meet this criterion at the age of 3 years," Meitha said.

Although there is no definite benchmark for when it is better to start a toilet training, delays in doing so can cause a number of problems, ranging from health to the child's independence.

"This will raise concerns about an increase in the spread of disease, both infection, diarrhea, and hepatitis A," said Meitha.

"Delayed toilet training also in children causes refusal to defecate and constipation can occur, as well as problems with achievement and maintenance of bladder control," he added.

Not only causing health problems in children, but delays in toilet training also have the potential to cause stress in parents, family members, and the environment such as child care facilities and teachers at school.

The reason is, children who have not been trained to use toilets to urinate or defecate can increase the workload of child care officers and children's playgrounds.

One of the problems that are often encountered in children is that they are still using diapers or diaper because they are still old who should have entered the independence phase. Citing the Ministry of Health's website, approximately 30 percent of children over the age of three and 10 percent of children over the age of five are still experiencing delays in training.

Children who are late in implementing toilet training also have the potential to become spoiled, not independent children, and carry a large habit of storing them. Bilatoilet training is not applied to children from an early age will be more difficult to direct children when their children get older.

Self-esteem is one of the developments that children need to have from an early age, so that they are used to doing everything on their own in the future, whether it is related to their own activities or activities in their daily lives, without relying on others with little parental guidance according to the stages of development and capacity.

For this reason, children's independent attitudes need to be applied from an early age, one of which is by making a toilet training. If the child's independent attitude was applied when the child was grown, independence would not be intact.