"Diaper-free" movement encourages parents to potty train from birth

[Laurent]

Parents begin potty training at birth
By RODRIQUE NGOWI, Associated Press Writer
Mon Aug 27, 2:05 PM ET

SUTTON, Mass. - Thirteen-month-old Dominic Klatt stopped banging the furniture in the verandah, looked at his mother and clasped his right hand around his left wrist to signal that he needed to go to the bathroom.

His mother took the diaper-less tot to a tree in the yard, held him in a squatting position and made a gentle hissing sound — prompting the infant to relieve himself on cue before he rushed back to play.

Dominic is a product of a growing "diaper-free" movement founded on the belief that babies are born with an instinctive ability to signal when they have to answer nature's call. Parents who practice the so-called "elimination communication" learn to read their children's body language to help them recognize the need, and they mimic the sounds that a child associates with the bathroom.

Erinn Klatt began toilet training her son at birth and said he has not wet his bed at night since he was six months old.

"The nice part is ... really getting the majority of poops in the toilet versus having to clean that," Klatt said. "I don't have to wake up at night and change diapers or have wet sheets anywhere. That's really nice.

"And being able to travel without a big, bloated diaper bag is terrific," she said.

Some parents and toilet training experts are skeptical.

"They teach them from birth? Oh, my God!" said 40-year-old Lisa Bolcato, as she held her 5-month-old daughter, Rose, at a park on Boston Common. "When you're getting two hours of sleeps between feedings, I don't think that you have the time to do it. You just make sure that your child's healthy and happy and well-fed."

Still, the practice is common in many parts of rural Africa and Asia where parents cannot afford diapers.

In the United States, many of the parents are stay-at-home-moms, but there are also working mothers. Some meet in online groups, at homes and in public parks to share experiences and cheer each others' efforts.

Experts at the Child Study Center at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center say children younger than 12 months have no control over bladder or bowel movements and little control for 6 months after that.

But some parents begin going diaper-free at birth, and the infants can initiate bowel movements on cue as young as 3 to 4 months, said Elizabeth Parise, spokeswoman of DiaperFreeBaby.org, a network of free support groups promoting the practice.

And unlike some methods of toilet training, there are no rewards or punishment associated with it.

Dr. Mark Wolraich, professor of pediatrics and director of the Child Study Center, said the practice essentially conditions young children to go to the bathroom at predictable times or show clear signs when they must go.

"To be truly toilet-trained, the child has to be able to have the sensation that they need to go, be able to interpret that sensation and be able to then tell the parent and take some action," said Wolraich, who is also editor of the American Academy of Pediatrics' book on toilet training.

"And that's different from reading the subtle signs that the child is making when they have to go to the bathroom."

Parents attempt the early training to forge closer ties with their infants, to reduce the environmental impact associated with diapers and to avoid skin irritation caused by a wet diaper, Parise said.

Others were inspired by observing the practice while traveling abroad.

The practice also enables parents to get insight into an infant's development since more accidents occur if a child falls sick or enters a new phase such as learning to crawl, walk or talk.

This is because an infant may be too distracted by illness or efforts to master a new skill to communicate the need to go to the bathroom, said Melinda Rothstein, an MIT business school graduate who co-founded DiaperFreeBaby.org.

She says finding a supportive daycare center is the biggest challenge for parents who choose not to use diapers. Other problems include finding tiny underwear for diaper-free infants.

Isis Arnesen, 33, of Boston, has a 14-week-old daughter, Lucia, who is diaper-free. She said it can be awkward to explain the process to people, such as when she helped Lucia relieve herself in a sink at a public restroom.

"Sometimes I don't know what's gonna happen and it doesn't work, and sometimes I feel a little embarrassed," Arnesen said. "It makes her happy though, right? She smiles, she's happy."

___

On the Net:

DiaperFreeBaby: http://www.diaperfreebaby.org

American Academy of Pediatrics on toilet training: AAP Children's Health Topics: TOILET TRAINING

Parents begin potty training at birth - Yahoo! News

So what about it, parents? Would any of you had the nerve to go completely diaper-free?

[darksithbunny]

This sounds weird. I wonder what kind of bathroom problems might be come from this when the kid is older. And I think I actually read that just before baby guru Dr. Spock died, he recanted about kids being potty trained so young and said to start later. I will go see if I can find it.

Found part of it: The late Dr. Benjamin Spock, among the foremost respected voices on child-rearing, warned that toilet training in the first year could backfire. Early "training" is really conditioning, and not learning, and could lead to later rebellion through bed-wetting, he writes in his landmark Dr. Spock's Baby and Child Care (Pocket Books).

[Laurent]

Isis Arnesen, 33, of Boston, has a 14-week-old daughter, Lucia, who is diaper-free. She said it can be awkward to explain the process to people, such as when she helped Lucia relieve herself in a sink at a public restroom.

This is the part that really got me. If you want your infant to take a dump under the tree in your yard - hey, great. Fabulous.

But, I take issue with baby turds in the sink where I have to wash my hands.

[WitchHazelEyed]

Originally Posted by Laurent

This is the part that really got me. If you want your infant to take a dump under the tree in your yard - hey, great. Fabulous.

But, I take issue with baby turds in the sink where I have to wash my hands.

I'm sure she meant peeing not pooping. That would be disgusting. I can't imagine someone thinking it's ok to let their child defecate in a public sink. (Not that I think peeing is really much better)

God. I hope she meant pee.

[Pippin69]

I don't have kids, but it sounds interesting. But why a sink or a tree? Isn't that going to psychologically mess up the kid to associate non-toilets with going to the bathroom? Can't the hold the baby over a toilet? They are babyseats for toilets, too.

If it's all about training, aren't they teaching the kids to go to the bathroom in strange places? I wouldn't be offended by a baby with no diaper, but I would be offended by someone's kid encouraged to take a crap in my park by their parents who clearly knew they had to go. The parents are the ones who need the training to take them to a proper bathroom and use the toilet.

[ang]

we're going to be trying to get pregnant soon & elimination communication is one thing we really plan on giving a shot. one of the main reasons that it makes sense to me is that our children won't have to unlearn old behavior & learn new behavior in re. to the potty. another benefit of practicing infant potty training (with cloth diaper backup) is the low impact that it has on the environment.

[southernbelle]

Originally Posted by Laurent

This is the part that really got me. If you want your infant to take a dump under the tree in your yard - hey, great. Fabulous.

But, I take issue with baby turds in the sink where I have to wash my hands.

I have a problem with this, too. It's disgusting. If you want a "diaper free" child, at least have the courtesy for others to make them use a toilet while in public instead of assuming that everyone else will be as impressed as you are that your spawn is relieving itself in a sink, public park, or any other place that is utilized by other people who DON'T want to come into contact with your child's waste. If you're unwilling or unable to do this, keep the child at home until it's properly trained.

I cringe when I think of the people washing their hands at that sink and probably inadvertently getting traces of Lucia's waste all over them.

Allowing and ENCOURAGING your child to relieve itself in public anywhere other than in a diaper or toilet is TOTALLY unacceptable and truly obnoxious.

[nwgirl]

I probably wouldn't do it. Then again, I didn't do the kiddie Mozart or sign language either. My kid will probably be scarred for life, but he was potty trained the regular old fashioned way of sitting on the potty chair and gettig M&M's as rewards.

[McJag]

Oh for petes sake. This makes me so tired. How popular are these people with friends & relatives? Yuk! Like people who try cloth diapers-nasty and spend 3 times the amount on soap, using all the water and STILL they are not gonna be clean!! Poor babies. Their childhood has been shortened, now babyhood? Get a dog for fast potty training!

[western]

Originally Posted by Laurent

Still, the practice is common in many parts of rural Africa and Asia where parents cannot afford diapers.

Well, that answers one question I've had for years - how parents in those countries handled not having diapers. Couldn't understand how the kid wouldn't just 'go' whenever and whenever.

I think this is really interesting. Would take a lot of work though.

These parents that are trying it... a tree and a sink? Seriously? I can see it would be convenient but how are you going to explain to 5 yr old junior that whipping it out whenever he/she gets the urge just isn't appropriate in social settings? Or do they plan to teach that with the extra time they'll have not potty training?

[crackho]

Originally Posted by WitchHazelEyed

I'm sure she meant peeing not pooping. That would be disgusting. I can't imagine someone thinking it's ok to let their child defecate in a public sink. (Not that I think peeing is really much better)

God. I hope she meant pee.

Uh, I really don't want to have to wash my hands in a pee sink, either.

Oh, I yearn for the days when parents didn't take their kids out in public until they were 18.

[PaintTheTownRed]

When I was in Venice, Italy I saw a mother with a small girl peeing on a tree. The mother held her daughter's legs straight up and the stream looked like it was coming out of a penis. At the time it seemed really odd, but after reading this article, I now know what she was doing. It seems like an interesting idea except for the going pee in public sink part, that's gross.

[A*O]

More New Age bollox. These are probably the same mothers who breastfeed until the kid goes to High School and don't believe in discipline because it crushes their individuality. Tiny children don't have sufficient bladder and bowel control to 'signal' apart from anything else. Rearing babies is hard enough without adding this nonsense into the daily routine. I'm sure all of us with toddlers who are being potty trained have sometimes had emergencies when you have to let your kid pee behind a tree or in the gutter but that's not the same thing as this.

[Anne2007]

Originally Posted by southernbelle

I have a problem with this, too. It's disgusting. If you want a "diaper free" child, at least have the courtesy for others to make them use a toilet while in public instead of assuming that everyone else will be as impressed as you are that your spawn is relieving itself in a sink, public park, or any other place that is utilized by other people who DON'T want to come into contact with your child's waste. If you're unwilling or unable to do this, keep the child at home until it's properly trained.

I cringe when I think of the people washing their hands at that sink and probably inadvertently getting traces of Lucia's waste all over them.

Allowing and ENCOURAGING your child to relieve itself in public anywhere other than in a diaper or toilet is TOTALLY unacceptable and truly obnoxious.

Yeah that is probably how I got my giardia, washing my hands in the sink where the devil spawn pooped.

[Aella]

Originally Posted by Laurent

This is the part that really got me. If you want your infant to take a dump under the tree in your yard - hey, great. Fabulous.

But, I take issue with baby turds in the sink where I have to wash my hands.

Yes, talk about disgusting!

This is just typical of inconsiderate, entitled parents embracing wacky child-rearing philosophies, who think the whole world should be inconvenienced/annoyed just so they little special snowflake can 'express themselves freely', or some other rot.