Feb. 15, 2008 - Cloth Diapers
I'm not sure what exactly made me try cloth diapers. It was about four months ago. I must have read an article about them and it peaked my interest. I went out and bought some--one pack (which contained 12 diapers), a pack of covers (contained 3 covers) and two four packs of pins. My idea was that I would use them when I ran out of disposables. I remember looking on-line to see how to actually put them on a baby as well as how to wash them and I came across site after site either selling them, advertising for services to clean them, or claiming the benefits of using them. It seemed that a whole world existed around those who swathed their baby in cloth diapers.
The more I read about cloth diapers, the more I knew that I wanted to try them on more than a part-time basis. Of course, that would mean buying more diapers, covers,and pins. Spending money now will save me money in the long run. Jason was reading over my shoulder while I read some of the articles I found on-line and he agreed with some of the benefits as well...escpecially the one where we would save money!
That was then, this is now. Four months later, I use cloth diapers every time I change my babies' diapers. I noticed they have less diaper rash and I am spending a lot less money on disposables (I still have to buy them because dh is too afraid he will poke the babies with the pins and if he's up for changing the diapers, I'm not going to push the issue of which kind of diaper he should use...I have only bought two small packages in four months, though). I feel better because I know I'm doing what's best for my babies!
Top 5 reasons why I use cloth diapers:
- Save money (By my calculations, I figured that we spent about $1600 the first year for disposables for the twins. With cloth diapers, my supplies should cost about $50-100 per year. That's including the diapers, covers and replacements if they tear, pins, and the detergent I use to wash them.)
- Better for environment (Over 92% of all single-use diapers end up in a landfill. In 1988, nearly $300 million dollars were spent annually just to discard disposable diapers, whereas cotton diapers are reused 50 to 200 times before being turned into rags. No one knows how long it takes for a disposable diaper to decompose, but it is estimated to be about 250-500 years, long after your children, grandchildren and great, great, great grandchildren will be gone. Disposable diapers are the third largest single consumer item in landfills, and represent about 4% of solid waste. In a house with a child in diapers, disposables make up 50% of household waste. Disposable diapers generate sixty times more solid waste and use twenty times more raw materials, like crude oil and wood pulp. The manufacture and use of disposable diapers amounts to 2.3 times more water wasted than cloth. Over 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.)
- Softer on babies' skin (Honestly, I know I'm not comfortable wearing a pad so I think it''s safe to assume that my babies would be more comfortable having cotton next to their skin than a disposable diaper.)
- No chemicals on their skin ( Disposable diapers have traces of Dioxin, an extremely toxic by-product of the paper-bleaching process, a carcinogenic chemical, listed by the EPA as the most toxic of all cancer-linked chemicals. It is banned in most countries, but not the U.S. Disposable diapers also contain Tributyl-tin (TBT) - a toxic pollutant known to cause hormonal problems in humans and animals. In addition, they contain sodium polyacrylate, a type of super absorbent polymer (SAP), which becomes a gel-like substance when wet. A similar substance had been used in super-absorbancy tampons until the early 1980s when it was revealed that the material increased the risk of toxic shock syndrome. In May 2000, the Archives of Disease in Childhood published research showing that scrotal temperature is increased in boys wearing disposable diapers, and that prolonged use of disposable diapers will blunt or completely abolish the physiological testicular cooling mechanism important for normal spermatogenesis)
- Earlier potty training (I've never rushed it with Ariella and Kaylah, but having two at the same time, this may just come in handy!)
My diaper facts for this blog have come from: http://www.realdiaperassociation.org/diaperfacts.php
Comments
Feb. 17, 2008 - Untitled Comment
Posted by jsgay97
Just a thought.
Jennifer
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