Did you know that your baby will spend approximately 25 000 hours in a diaper and need between 6000-10000 diaper changes in their first years of life?
With that in mind here is some information to help you decide whats best for your little prince or princesses bottom!
First of all lets look at cost. In the years that your child is in diapers (from birth right to being potty trained) you're looking at around a $1500-$2500 diaper bill for disposables! The initial start up cost for cloth diapering may look hefty at anywhere from $250-$700 but look at the amount you'll save in the long run...a grand total of: $1250-$1800! And the "icing on the cake" cloth diapers can be used for all your children saving you the cost of diapering them in disposables. To sum it up, your cloth diapers will have paid for themselves within a couple months and from there on it will basically be free to diaper your baby!
Next lets discuss rashes. According to one study 78% of babies in disposables will get diaper rashes while only 7% of cloth diapered babies will. One of the chemicals used in disposables is Sodium Polyacrylate...don't know what that is? Its the same chemical used in tampons that has been linked to Toxic Shock Syndrome and can cause allergic reactions on babies sensitive little behinds.
We all know that no one really likes dealing with diapers. They're stinky, messy and a lot of work no matter if they're cloth or disposable. So why are we prolonging the potty training process by keeping our little ones in disposables? They brag about "locking away wetness" which is great for small babies but it's not very helpful in potty training! Your toddler or preschooler can't feel that they're wet so its not really bothering them to stay in their diapers. When they're in cloth they can feel it, most don't like it and are more likely to use the potty to avoid that feeling of discomfort. You can even purchase cloth trainers! I just bought some from "Cow Patties Cloth Diapers" (check them out on Facebook!). They make custom trainers for only $8 each, my son picked out the prints he wanted and couldn't be more excited to get them in the mail :)
Lets turn our attention now to our beautiful planet and the impact disposables have on it. It is estimated that around 5 million tons of untreated waste is being dumped in landfills every year via disposable diapers!! It is not just the diaper that can cause environmental problems either...its whats in the used ones.
From Environment Canada:
"The waste from the cloth diaper is properly treated as sewage, while disposable diapers in landfills can be a breeding ground for a wide variety of viruses, including hepatitis B and polio from vaccines given to newborns, also the effluents from the disposable diaper manufacturing process (plastic, pulp, and bleached paper) are more damaging to the environment then the cotton and hemp growing and manufacturing process."
"The very lengthy decomposition of diaper waste and subsequent health risks of untreated human waste, with it potential disease-causing organisms and remnants of prescribed medications, will cause problems, particularly if this leaches into the groundwater supply and contaminates our water resources."
Enough said.
And finally: Look at how completely adorable they are! The bright colours and cute prints make them irresistible,
and dare I say it...make diapering more fun!
