Everyone knows that if you have a baby, you’re going to need diapers. Loads of them! Most parents have diapers at the top of their “to get” lists, which often go on and on; diaper wipes, diaper bags, diaper disposal pails and diaper creams. Even, diaper “cakes” which, I’
m told, are popular baby shower gifts with various sizes of disposable diapers stacked in tiers to form the shape of a cake. Ingenious! Or gross?
Just choosing a package of diapers can be a daunting task when faced with a hundred different brands, all claiming the essential feature that makes life with a newborn a breeze. Often, the choice will hinge on whether Mom prefers Snoopy or Barbie diapers, and that’
s that.
Many will never consider other options for diapering that aren’t found on drug store shelves. Cloth diapers, which have been making a comeback in this age of “green” living are an increasingly popular alternative to disposables. And if you join a diaper service, diapers are delivered right to your door! Yet, cloth diapers remain on the outer fringes of the mainstream, often viewed as harder to use than disposables, and specifically reserved for the “hippies”
among us.
It is easy to see why misconceptions about cloth diapers abound. Disposable diaper manufacturers Proctor and Gamble and Kimberley-Clark use enormous advertising budgets to ensure these beliefs persist. They spread the word about their diapers by way of prime-time T.V. and glossy magazine ads, full of toddling babies wearing diapers with more features than a car. It’s no wonder that the term “disposable diaper”
has become redundant.
The cloth vs. disposable controversy rages on, and some argue that the environmental impacts of both kinds are high.
The most common argument against the use of cloth diapers is that washing them wastes water, and adds to water contaminants via laundering. While there is some truth to that argument, it doesn’
t consider the amount of water used and contaminated in the manufacturing process of disposable diapers, which are largely made of wood pulp, plastic and various other chemicals including bleach and dioxins.
Writer Jane McConnell has researched the problem extensively and she argues that the amount of water used to wash a cloth diaper, especially at a diaper service facility, is actually comparable to the amount of water used by one person flushing the toilet in a day. Definitely interesting food for thought. Also, anyone who has ever tried to use a regular diaper on a toddler in the pool, will know that those suckers absorb a TON! Imagine how much water those same diapers collect from the ground while they sit in a landfill.
Diapers are able to hold so much water due to the Sodium Polyacrylate crystals that are embedded in the wood pulp of the liners. The substance is able to absorb nearly 100 times its weight in water, and is the same stuff that was removed from tampons in 1985, due to it’
s suspected link to Toxic Shock Syndrome in women. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/vol5no6/hajjeh.htm look here
It isn’t all or nothing when it comes to choosing diapers, and many parents use cloth diapers at home, and disposables while out and about. Some parents never put a disposable on their kid at all, and it can be done. Many parents think it’
s more reasonable to cloth diaper part-time. Proponents insist that it still makes an impact. The most important thing is to get a good system from the get-go instead of getting frustrated and giving up due to faulty equipment.
Cloth diapering is not for everyone, and parenting is hectic enough without added chores and laundry, but cloth diapering might be easier than parents think. There are hundreds of websites like this devoted to making cloth diapering easier for the newbie. Also, cloth diapering can be a lot cheaper than disposables done right. With the choices nowadays it doesn’t hurt to try. And if anyone wants to skip diapers all together, you can do that too! Find out how here…
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