This post is part of the Real Diaper Facts carnival hosted by Real Diaper Events, the official blog of the Real Diaper Association, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to cloth diaper education. Participants were asked to write about diaper myths and real diaper facts. See the list at the bottom of this post to read the rest of the carnival entries.
As I speak with parents making the decision about what kind of diapers to use for their children, cloth diapers versus disposable diapers, people often ask me what reasons our family has for choosing cloth and why I stick with it. There are so many reasons we are proud to be a cloth diapering family – here are some of my favorites.
1. Cloth Diapers are sustainable. – With cloth diapers, I am not sending hundreds of pounds of diaper waste to the dump each month. Instead, I wash and reuse my diapers, making them much more sustainable. Others may try to convince you otherwise, but the environmental impact of cloth diapers versus disposable diapers is no contest. The Real Diaper Association estimates that 27.4 billion diapers end up in landfills each year, and that they may take anywhere from 250-500 years to decompose. The raw materials used in making disposables are incredible, too – it is estimated that 300 pounds of wood, 50 pounds of petroleum feedstocks, and 20 pounds of chlorine are used to produce disposable diapers for ONE baby each year. (You can check out these facts at more at the RDA’s Real Diaper Facts site or What a Waste.)
2. I’m not making late night runs to the store when I realize we are low on diapers. - When we start getting low on diapers, I just toss a load in the machine. It is that simple.
3. I am keeping chemicals away from my baby’s bottom. - No matter how you toss it, disposable diapers have chemicals in them that I would rather not have anywhere near my baby. For one thing, disposable diapers contain traces of Dioxin, an extremely toxic by-product of the paper-bleaching process (which is used in making the wood pulp in disposable diapers). Dioxin is a carcinogenic chemical, listed by the EPA as the most toxic of all cancer-linked chemicals, so much so that it is banned in most countries (but not the U.S.). Another chemical present in disposable diapers is a type of super absorbent polymer (SAP). SAPs are the chemicals that help to absorb liquid. They used to be present in tampons until they were banned from those products for contributing to toxic shock syndrome, but yet are still allowed near babies. (Again, check out the RDA’s Real Diaper Facts site.)
4. Cloth diapers save us a ton of money. – I just wrote about this earlier, with tons of facts and figures, so you can check that out if you would like. The end result of my research is that people can save an average of $1860.11 when using cloth diapers versus disposable diapers from birth through age two and a half.
5. They really are easy to use! – Honestly, with a family of five, if cloth was too much work, I wouldn’t be able to do it. It is just one more load of laundry every two to three days. And as I mentioned above, no runs to the store!
These are just a few of the MULTITUDE of reasons why we chose cloth in our family. Each family needs to make this decision for themselves, but I strongly urge you to consider cloth. I would be so happy to help you along the way – you can email me here.
Inspired by my awesome roomie from ABC, Kim Rosas from Dirty Diaper Laundry, I am going to start making video demos of the diapers we carry. The first is a demo of the bumGenius Organic AIO. This is a fantastic diaper, but when getting started, it can sometimes be hard to figure out just what to do with all of that fabric inside.
I have a fantastic customer, Mindy, who is in the middle of a custom diaper trial. She just told me yesterday that she is blogging about her cloth diapering experiences at her blog, the Farmer Family Scoop. I read through her post titled “One Week In,” and I think she has some wonderful insights. Here is some of what Mindy writes…
Every cloth diaper option has it’s pros and cons. This is why no one will definitely tell you what “works best.” Truthfully, you have to take into consideration your lifestyle, budget, future children, and personal preferences. This is where the diaper trial is so handy! With several options on hand to try and 2 weeks, you can make an educated decision.
I think that Mindy had a major breakthrough with the statement above. One of the hardest things about starting out cloth diapering is that there are so many options, and it is hard to decide what might work best for your family. I remember so vividly wishing someone would just tell me which one was best so that I could buy them and be done, but as Mindy wrote, there are pros and cons to each type, and so no one can make that decision for you. Here at Diaper Daisy, we do the best we can to send you down the right path by consulting on cloth diapering choices and providing customers with a two-week trial program.
Some more of Mindy’s thoughts…
Disposable diapers were not hassle-free. People keep referring to the ease of disposables and the yuck-factor involved with cloth. Truthfully, diapering is gross. Keep in mind that I have an 8 month-old, so I can’t vouch for newborn cloth diaper changing. I did, however, change disposables on a toddler and baby for quite a few months and felt like I was drowning in diapers! There was never enough room in the diaper pail and it wasn’t always convenient to get to. We put the pail in the garage to cut down on smell and flies were attracted to it. The bag needed to be changed frequently – ick! I was constantly buying diapers and estimated we spent about $60 a month to diaper 2 kids using Luvs and generics. Plus (and maybe I shouldn’t admit this), there’s always that temptation that a disposable “isn’t really that wet” because of the cost.
What Mindy writes is so true. Disposables, although they can be thrown away and not washed, come with their own hassles. Pounds and pounds of garbage, running out to the store late at night because there are no more diapers in the house, and constantly battling stink are some of the first that come to mind. And as far as cleaning up poop is concerned, I wasn’t cleaning out diapers, but I cleaned out clothes MUCH more often with diaper blowouts when we used disposables. With my youngest, who has been cloth diapered from birth, I have had poopy clothes ONE TIME, and that was my fault, not the diaper’s.
I love it when I can see moms figuring out cloth diapers and realizing how great they can be. I can’t wait to read more!
For many parents, one of the biggest decisions they make when investing in cloth diapers is whether to go with one-size diapers or invest in sized diapers. There are a different factors to consider when determining which type would be right for your family and lifestyle.
Fit
The fit of sized and one-size diapers is different because one is made for a much smaller size range than the other. What does this mean? Sized diapers tend to fit much trimmer than one size. One size diapers, as much as they claim to work from birth through potty training, typically do best once the baby starts putting on weight, around ten pounds. One size diapers also do not work as well for more husky babies because they tend to grow out of them long before potty training, especially around the waist.
On the other hand, one size diapers are great because they fit such a wide range of sizes. Many people can indeed get their children from infancy through potty training in one set of diapers. There are also parents with two children in diapers who are able to use the same diapers for both children.
Longevity (and Resale Value)
Think about your favorite pair of jeans. If washed them every other day, how long do you think they would hold up? Sized diapers do not get worn or washed as much as one-size diapers. Because of this, they are will last through more than one child or hold a high percentage of their value to be sold after you have used them. One-size diapers are used and abused for years, so the chances of them lasting through more than one child or having much value on the resale market are slim.
Cost
The cost of each type of diaper tends to be a big consideration when choosing between one-size and sized diapers. When I was first shopping for cloth diapers, I could not understand why people would spend the same amount on each size of sized diapers that I was spending on one one-sized diaper that would fit for years. However, if you consider resale value and the ability to use diapers on multiple children, the sized diapers even out on cost. Either way you go, you are going to save a ton of money on disposables – $1500 or more!
Bottom line
So, what’s a parent to do? The bottom line is that you can’t go wrong with either choice. By thinking about your family plans, likelihood of actually listing diapers for resale, and your own personal preferences, you can make a good choice for your family. Need some advice? Contact us!
