I never thought twice about cloth diapers until Ella was about 2. I had a couple of online friends who lived in states far from me that had started using modern cloth diapers. They raved of their successes with them and how they were far superior in every way. I had to admit they were adorable and looked comfortable but my baby was near potty training and I wasn't having more children so the cost would not be worth it for me.
Fast forward to last summer. I found myself pregnant with my forth baby. Our income is tight and where was I going to squeeze out money every month for diapers? Especially those first few months when you go through a ton. I suddenly remembered my online friends from a couple years before. It was like a lightbulb went off in my head! If I purchased diapers I could re-use I wouldn't have to budget for diapers. It seemed so easy and it has been.
As I started to research modern cloth diapering I realized there was sooooo much more to this than just saving money. Yes this was my first motivating factor but there are so many other reasons that this has been a great choice for my baby.
It is amazing to me that what was normal for centuries even up until 30 years ago is now seen as weird. And now that I have educated myself I'm okay with being seen as weird.
So why use cloth diapers?
#1 Cost
In a baby's first two years of life they use 6,000 disposable diapers. My boys are generally not through with potty training until age 3 so we will need 9,000 disposable diapers. The average cost of disposables is .23 cents/diaper. That comes to $2,070 to diaper my baby or approx $60/month. When you throw in disposable wipes the cost rises even more.
Plus, plus plus recently Proctor and Gamble and Kimberly Clark announced that they were raising the prices of diapers up to 5%!!! I saw this in action this last week at Walmart. As I was browsing their clearance section in the baby dept I saw jumbo packs of Pampers Cruisers on the clearance shelf. They were size 3, our size in disposables, and 35 diapers in the package. They were not actually marked down. They were the regular price of $8.97. The packages on the regular shelf were also $8.97 BUT there are now only 30 diapers in a package!!!
Tylers newborn diaper "stash" It cost me $165 and diapered him for the first 3 months of his life. During that time I would have spent at least $180 on disposables. I resold most of these diapers for $135. I have kept the small stack on the far left.
Tyler wearing a One Size diaper at 5 weeks & approx 8lbs. This diaper "grows" with him and will fit until potty training!.
Tyler had some different newborn cloth diapers than he has now. I have resold those and his other newborn accessories like covers. I used that money to reinvest in new larger diapers. The majority of his diapers are one size and will last him until potty learning or 36lbs. We have invested $548 in cloth diapers. You can cloth diaper for even less than that. If you use strickly prefolds or flats and covers you could easily diaper your child from birth to potty learning for $100. Start up costs are obviously high but by buying a little at a time, sewing your own or even buying gently used you can save a ton. When you are done diapering your child you can resell your used diapers. It's a win win!
In a recent article I read:
"As cloth has exploded in popularity, there's grown a judgment of elitism associated with this diapering method, as premium brands available mostly online beg nearly $20 apiece. Stacie Walker, owner of Louisville's Fannies Diaper Service, would love families to understand that "cloth diapering is neither 'hippie' nor 'elitist'. In fact, it's the most non-elitist parenting choice I've made, because disposables are just too expensive for our family budget." The sticker price of cloth creates an illusion that suggests cloth diapering is improbable for most families, requiring a large investment to get started. Admittedly a diaper stash can cost upwards of $500, but families using disposables will spend between $1,000 to $2,000 MORE from birth to potty training--money that could pay utility bills or credit card debt."
But Steph, if you subscribe to Amazon mom and stack coupons you can get 500 diapers and wipes for $9 and some change on Amazon.com. This is true if you can find the coupons but it also brings me to my next point.
Look at that cute littl bum! This is one of our favorite prints from Nifty Nappy.
#2 Health of my baby
Tyler wearing a handmade wool diaper cover..
Disposable diapers contain Dioxin, an extremely toxic by-product of the paper bleaching process. It is 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 US. In males they believe the use of disposables can be linked to testicular cancer. Disposables have only been around about 30 years. We really don't know the long term affects of using them.
Disposable diapers contain TBT a toxic chemical known to cause hormonal problems in humans and animals.
Disposable diapers contain sodium polyacrylate, a type of super absorbant polymer which becomes a gel like substance when wet. A similar substance was in tampons until the 1980's when it was revealed that the material increased the risk of toxic shock syndrome by increasing absorbancy and improving the environment for the growth of toxic producing bacteria.
Studies have been done linking disposable diapers to asthma.
In May 2000 the Archives of Disease in Childhood published research showing that scrotal tempurature is increased in boys wearing disposable diapers, and that prolonged use of disposables will blunt or completely abolish the physiological testicular cooling mechanism important for normal spermatogenesis.
These are our fitted diapers. They are usually made of natural materials and are very breathable!
Fitted diapers usually require a cover. We have quite a variety!
.
.
When Christian was a baby he had severe reactions to every kind of disposable but one. The only diapers we could buy were the generic ones sold at Harmons. Every time I went grocery shopping I cleared the shelf as they only came in the tiny packs of 20. They were different than every other generic out there and they were the only ones that didn't cause him to bleed. Now I know he had chemical burns. I wish I had considered cloth diapering back then. Cloth diapers allow more airflow resulting in less diaper rashes plus there are no chemicals in them.
#3 Conservation!
.
When people think of cloth diapers they sometimes assume that the person using them is a "tree hugger" or an extreme environmentalist. As I have researched cloth diapers I have realized this is actually something to be concerned about.
.
Over 27 billion disposable diapers are consumed in just the United States every year. The instructions on the disposable diaper package actually says to dispose of all fecal matter into the toilet before disposing of the diaper. It is estimated that 98% of people do not do this. I know I never have. About 5 million lbs of untreated body excrement, which may contain over 100 intestinal viruses, is brought to landfills via disposables. This may contribute to ground water contamination and attracts insects that carry and transmit diseases.
From the Pampers.com website
HERE
"Waste removal As the Pampers bag recommends, you'll want to dump bowel movements in the toilet. Then just roll the diaper into its backsheet, using the tape or fasteners to keep it closed, and dispose of it in the trash."
.
No one knows how long it will take for a disposable diaper to decompose but it is estimated to be between 250-500 years. That means every disposable diaper that has EVER been thrown away is still sitting in a landfill somewhere.
.
Disposable diapers are the third largest single consumer item in landfills. In a household with 1 child in diapers disposable diapers represent 50% of the household's waste.
.
Compared to cloth diapers, disposable diapers use 20 times more raw materials like crude oil and wood pulp. I know what you're thinking. You are wondering about the use of water and energy it takes to wash cloth diapers. Wouldn't that be as big of an impact on our environment? Actually in the manufacturing process of disposable diapers, 2.3 times more water is wasted than washing 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 for ONE year. Holy Crap!
Diapers hanging to dry inside the house.
.
Now I know what else you are thinking about. You are thinking about the mess and the POOP and the time and the washing! Well I am here to tell you that it is not any harder than using disposables. Remember you are suposed to get the poop off of disposables and into the toilet before throwing them away. Modern cloth diapers go on and off just like disposables. Now some mamas do prefer to go old school and use flats, prefolds and pins but there are SOOOO many choices out there. There's even diapers that dad's will use without complaining. There's cool inventions like diaper sprayers that wash the poop right down the toilet and with an exclusively breastfed baby you don't have to worry about the poop because it's water soluable. As far as washing. I just toss everything in the washer, run them through a rinse, do a hot wash and double rinse and we are done. Some of my diapers I dry in the dryer and some I hang up. I am the mama that has line dried all my kids clothes for 12 years so it's no big deal to me.
Diapers ready to be put away.
.
The one thing I love about cloth diapering is it is fun! I love all the prints and colors. I love how soft they are and how cute they look on my baby! It's actually addicting! They are super fun to buy and collect!
Look at all the colors!
Look at some of our cute prints!
It's like a whole wardrobe for my baby's butt!
.
Does this mean I never use disposables? Nope. We still use them sometimes. All the generous gifts of disposables I was given before Tyler was born were put to good use and I was so grateful for them. I am also grateful for the opportunity I now have to educate other parents on the benefits of using cloth. I love how much money I am saving and will save over time. I love how much better they are for my son and his delicate skin, and I now can say I have made a difference!
Tyler likes them too!
.
.
Here's one of my favorite vidoes:
And another from Julie the maker of Rump-a-rooz diapers. Warning you might need a Kleenex for this one!
