Monday, July 6, 2009

My thoughts on Cloth Diapering





A friend of mine asked me to do some blog posts on cloth diapering and what my experience has been with it.






So..here is some information I have compiled on cloth diapering as well as my own personal experiences.


Cloth diapers are better for the environment.
Here are a few of the reasons why:

Eighteen billion disposable diapers are placed in landfills each year. They take as long as 500 years to decompose.

Disposable diapers make up the third-largest source of solid waste in landfills, after newspapers and food/beverage containers.

It takes more than 82,000 tons of plastic and 1.3 million tons of wood pulp (a quarter of a million tress) to manufacture the disposables that cover all the babies in the United States right now.

The wastewater produced from washing diapers is benign, while the wastewater from the manufacture of the pulp, paper, and plastics used in disposable diapers is toxic, containing dioxins, solvents, sludge, and heavy metals.

The Landbank Report, an independent review and evaluation done by a London environmental agency, concluded that compared with cloth diapers, throwaway diapers use 20 times more raw materials, three times more energy, two times more water, and generate 60 times more waste (The Landbank Consultancy Limited, “A Review of Proctor & Gamble’s Environmental Balances for Disposable and Re-usable Nappies,” July 1991).
Damage to the environment by using disposable diapers is only one factor in your choices about diapers.

Another factor is the health and comfort of your baby.
Consider these points:

Superabasorbent disposable diapers contain a substance called sodium
polyacrylate that absorbs up to 100 times its weight in water. When you change a
baby that has worn one of these diapers, you may notice clear beads of this gel
on her genitals and bottom. No studies have been conducted on the effects of
sodium polyacrylate on infants, many of whom are exposed to it 24 hours a day
for years. Dioxin, a toxic by-product of the paper bleaching process used in
making disposable diapers, is present in them.

Recent research has indicated that disposables may be a trigger for asthma, due to the release of chemical fumes. No similar response occurred in the cloth diapers tested.

A German study found a possible link between plastic diapers and male
infertility. Further studies are needed to see if these effects are long term.

Disposable diapers seem to cause more skin problems in babies. Cotton
seems to “breathe” better. Disposables are so well sealed that a baby can go for
hours without a leak—but that same seal gives bacteria a fabulous breeding
ground as well, and the ammonia that develops in the bacterial breakdown of
urine has nowhere to go. Babies in cloth diapers tend to be changed more
frequently, whereas the sense of dryness that disposable diaper gives may cause
the parents to leave it on the baby for hours.

There are other advantages to using cloth diapers as well. One of these is cost. Disposable diapers cost between 14 and 32 cents per use. Cloth diapers can cost as little as 5 cents per use, if you wash them yourself, or between 8 and 15 cents per use if you use a service.

As well, experts tend to agree that toddlers who use cloth diapers potty-train earlier. There is a very good reason for this. Children who wear disposable cannot feel the dampness of their diapers. There is simply no incentive to learn to use the toilet.

Here is a great article from Mothering magazine on cloth diapering.
It is called, "Dumping Disposable Diapers"

p.s. - the formatting on that last paragraph is off, I know...couldn't fix it. ;-P

6 comments:

Becca said...

Thanks, Sarah! I think I might just order one of those cloth diapers and try it out.

Mandi said...

Sarah, this is great information and all but just curious... What is YOUR experience with cloth diapers other than the price. What are your likes and dislikes and what's a day like with them? I mean if you are pregnant, nursing and ready to barf all the time how on earth could you handle cleaning them?

Sarah said...

Well Miss Mandi, here are things I have experienced:
They were only smelly when we were living w/o our own washer/dryer.
I was not able to do extra rinses or wash as often as I can now b/c I was paying with quarters and i was being cheap. I now have a washer and I am able to do a cold and a hot wash(and you only use 1/4 to 1/2 the amount of detergent and it has to be dye/additive free)
If you have your own washer and dryer, it is honestly not a hassle at all. I am still glad I did it when we did not own one. Other experience is that Fuzzi Bunz leak more than the others I have used. Like I said, Bum Genius are my fav. They go on just like a disposable and they keep bums just as dry. I love that I save money...even generic diapers are @$10 for a small pack. I remember seeing how many diapers we were throwing away and I feel good that I am doing something small to help the Earth. As far as how my day is different...not much except that I keep a very cute wet bag in my diaper bag to store dirty diapers when I'm on the go. I have a larger waterproof liner that I keep in a garbage can with a lid and toss all dirty diapers in. The lid keeps all smell contained and you would never be able to tell if you were in our bathroom. I throw the whole bag in every 2-3 days so I never have to touch old stinky diapers and I wash with Arm and Hammer FREE detergent. I use @ 1/4c. and sprinkle a few drops of tea tree oil or lavender oil in with the wash. I dry the inserts and prefolds on medium heat and hang the cover-type stuff so the velcro stays nice. Well, there is some of my experience. I have had a great experience with them(aside from the occasional detergent build up which less detergent, extra rinses and occasional splash of bleach in with the wash cure)
as an aside note, the directions on disposables actually say to put the solid poop in the toilet even though no one actually does it. If I am not mistaken, putting human waste in the trash can be a breeding ground for viruses and such.

Adria said...

Thanks for sharing all this info, Sarah!! I have been wanting to ask you about cloth diapering ever since I read a previous post a few months ago when you mentioned the cloth diapers. My poor little Lila gets diaper rashes so frequently that I have been considering the idea of cloth diapers more and more (along with the other good reasons!). You are an inspiration! :o)

Becca said...

What do you use for in the pool?

Sarah said...

My sister in law gave me a bunch of lil' swimmers so I have been using those but if I did not have those, I just use a pocket diaper without an insert. Swim diapers do nothing to hold in pee- only poop, so the pocket diaper minus the insert takes care of that.