Introduction to Cloth Diapers Series: Post 2
Why Cloth Diaper your baby?
1. Best for Baby and Mama (& Daddy)
2. Best for Mother Earth
3. Best for your Wallet
1. Best for Baby and Mama (& Daddy)
Many parents choose to cloth diaper their child for health reasons. Cloth diapers contain several different chemicals. Of course we can’t wrap our children in bubbles (although we might want to at times!), but we can control certain things. Another great reason to cloth diaper your child is cloth diapered babies tend to have less diaper rash (if any!).
Here is a list of what makes up a disposable diaper (from Changing Diapers):
Dyes
Fragrances
Plastics
I don’t know about you but I can’t pronounce half of those chemicals! When our babies are in diaper 24/7 for 2 years, why have all of these chemical pressed up next to their sensitive bodies!!
Now, people can argue that there are chemicals in cloth diapers. There are currently no studies that show the chemical exposure from cloth diapers. As a mom who cloth diapers, I can tell you I feel confident that my daughter is exposed to far less chemicals than when she is in disposable. If you do want to lessen the impact even more so, you can buy organic cloth diapers!
They are also best for moms and dads because they mean no late night diaper runs! And they are best for moms because they are super cute! You can have so much fun with these!
2. Best for Mother Earth
3.5 Million TONS or 28 BILLION disposable diapers are thrown away every year!
I’ll let you reread that and take that in!
Crazy! And add in the fact that it takes 250-500 years for those diapers to breakdown!
The very first disposable diaper created in the 1950’s is still in the landfill. My parents poop and pee is still sitting in our tons dump! Gross!
According to Autumn Becks research, disposable diapers require 5 times more energy, 8 times more raw material, 90 times more renewable resources, 2.3 times more waste water, 60 times more solid waste, and 4-30 times more land for landfills than cloth diapers!
Today’s cloth diapers are so much more earth friendly than the ones our parent’s and grandparent’s are familiar with. No bleach is required. Earth friendly detergents are preferred. When you use energy-efficient washing machines and dryers you help save more energy. And when you line dry your diapers you save even more energy! The sun is our friend when it comes to cloth diapers. The sun also removes stains! And can help kill yeast! When you are finished with your diapers, either keep them for a second or third or fourth child, donate them, or sale them!
3. Best for your Wallet
Cloth diapering can save you lots of money. Especially if you use the same diapers for your second child. Your initial purchase of cloth diapers can seem like a huge expense and some people wonder how you will save money. But if you buy everything you need up front and make no more purchases, besides water, electricity, and detergent, you won’t pay any more for diapers until your child is potty trained!
According to www.diaperdecisions.com (Changing Diapers did the math!), cost of a baby in cloth from birth to potty training would be $381 versus $2577.35 for disposables! That’s a savings of $2196!! On average, you can save $1500-$2000! What could you buy with that or where could you go with that?!?!
DiaperPin.com also has a calculator you can use. They estimate the energy cost is $0.013 for water and electricity per diaper.
Of course this just scratches the surface! There are several great resources on the internet but my favorite at KellyWels.com, AllAboutClothDiapers.com, RealDiaperAssociation.org and DiaperPin.com.
What was most eye opening to you in this article? Why do you cloth diaper your child? What are your favorite websites for cloth diaper information?
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