Baby in lab diaper

Potty-Training Breakthrough: The Disposable Diaper Method for Accurate Exposure Monitoring

Kai Mendoza in Health & Wellness December 2025 • 4 min read.

"Discover how a simple diaper can revolutionize environmental health studies in young children, offering a non-invasive and reliable way to measure pesticide exposure."

Understanding the unique environmental exposures of infants and young children is critical for safeguarding their health. Unlike adults, their physiology, behavior, and diet make them particularly vulnerable to environmental chemicals like pesticides. This heightened susceptibility underscores the need for accurate exposure assessment during these crucial developmental years.

Collecting urine samples from non-toilet-trained children, however, presents significant methodological challenges. Traditional approaches can be inconvenient, stressful for both child and parent, and may not yield sufficient sample volumes for comprehensive analysis. The quest for a reliable, non-invasive method has led researchers to explore innovative alternatives.

This article delves into a groundbreaking study that validates the use of disposable diapers as an effective tool for urine collection in young children. Discover how this simple, readily available method can revolutionize biomonitoring studies, providing valuable insights into pesticide exposure and paving the way for healthier environments for our youngest populations.

The Diaper Solution: How It Works and Why It Matters

The study, conducted by researchers at Radboud University Medical Center, tackled the challenge of urine collection head-on by comparing four common methods: disposable diapers, urine bags, collection pads, and the "clean catch" method. The results were striking, highlighting the clear advantages of the disposable diaper approach. The study involved assessing user ratings and success rates of urine collection methods.

Here’s a closer look at the key findings:

Success Rates: Disposable diapers demonstrated a remarkable 67% success rate, dwarfing the performance of urine bags (21%), collection pads (17%), and the clean catch method (a mere 4%).
User Ratings: Parents overwhelmingly favored the diaper method, giving it an average convenience rating of 9.0 out of 10. Collection pads were second best with 7.3 while urine bags and the clean catch received scores of 4.7 and 2.5, respectively.
Ease of Use: The familiar routine of diaper changes made the disposable diaper method less intrusive and more convenient for both children and parents.

With the success of diapers being validated, researchers moved forward to test with Hydroxy-tebuconazole for fungicide tebuconazole and creatinine for urine density adjustment. After analyzing with LC-MS/MS analysis, recoveries of hydroxy-tebuconazole was roughly 106%, and 87% for creatinine. This data further solidified the disposable diaper being a great choice in collecting urine.

The Future of Exposure Monitoring: A Healthier Tomorrow for Children

This innovative approach not only simplifies the process of urine collection but also enhances the accuracy and reliability of exposure assessments. By providing a more convenient and less intrusive method, researchers can gather valuable data on pesticide exposure in young children, leading to a better understanding of potential health risks and the development of targeted interventions to protect their well-being. As research continues, expect to see even more creative applications of this method, expanding its reach to other substances of interest and further solidifying its role in safeguarding children's health.

About this Article -

This article was crafted using a human-AI hybrid and collaborative approach. AI assisted our team with initial drafting, research insights, identifying key questions, and image generation. Our human editors guided topic selection, defined the angle, structured the content, ensured factual accuracy and relevance, refined the tone, and conducted thorough editing to deliver helpful, high-quality information.See our About page for more information.

This article is based on research published under:

DOI-LINK: 10.1016/j.toxlet.2018.09.018, Alternate LINK

Title: Urine Collection Methods For Non-Toilet-Trained Children In Biological Monitoring Studies: Validation Of A Disposable Diaper For Characterization Of Tebuconazole Exposure

Subject: Toxicology

Journal: Toxicology Letters

Publisher: Elsevier BV

Authors: A. Oerlemans, M.F.P. Van Dael, R.C.H. Vermeulen, F.G.M. Russel, P.T.J. Scheepers

Published: 2018-12-01

Everything You Need To Know

Why is using disposable diapers important for collecting urine samples from young children in environmental health studies?

The use of disposable diapers offers a non-invasive and more successful method for collecting urine samples from non-toilet-trained children. This is crucial because traditional methods like urine bags or the 'clean catch' method are often inconvenient, stressful, and yield insufficient sample volumes. Disposable diapers had a 67% success rate compared to urine bags at 21%. This directly addresses the challenge of accurately measuring environmental exposures like pesticides in young children, who are particularly vulnerable due to their physiology, behavior and diet.

Why is it important to measure environmental exposures in infants and young children?

Measuring environmental exposures, specifically to substances like pesticides, is vital because infants and young children are more susceptible to their harmful effects. Their bodies are still developing, and their behaviors (like putting things in their mouths) increase their risk of exposure. By accurately assessing exposure levels using methods like disposable diapers for urine collection, researchers can better understand potential health risks and develop targeted interventions to protect children's health and well-being during these critical developmental years.

What were the main findings of the study comparing disposable diapers to other urine collection methods?

The study found that disposable diapers had a significantly higher success rate (67%) compared to other methods like urine bags (21%), collection pads (17%), and the clean catch method (a mere 4%). Parents also rated the diaper method as much more convenient, with an average rating of 9.0 out of 10. This is important because it shows that using diapers is not only more effective but also more acceptable and easier for parents and children, leading to better data collection for environmental health studies.

What are Hydroxy-tebuconazole and creatinine, and what do the recovery rates mean in the context of disposable diaper urine collection?

Hydroxy-tebuconazole is a metabolite of the fungicide tebuconazole. Creatinine is a compound used to adjust for urine density. The recovery rates of Hydroxy-tebuconazole was roughly 106%, and 87% for creatinine when using disposable diapers for collection. This is important because it validates the reliability of using disposable diapers in research. It ensures that the levels of these chemicals measured in the urine collected from diapers accurately reflect the child's exposure, allowing for confident conclusions about environmental risks.

What are the potential implications of using disposable diapers for exposure monitoring in the future?

By simplifying urine collection with disposable diapers, researchers can gather more comprehensive and accurate data on pesticide exposure in young children. This leads to a better understanding of potential health risks and facilitates the development of targeted interventions to protect children's health. This method can potentially be expanded to monitor exposure to other harmful substances beyond pesticides, further safeguarding children's health and well-being. This could lead to more effective public health strategies and policies to reduce environmental risks for the youngest populations.