Cloth vs. Disposable Diapers

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Comparing Cloth & Disposable Diapers

Cost:

 Disposables: (0-3 years) about $2,500.00- $3,100.00 depending on brand

Cloth: (0-3years) about $550.00- $1,250.00 depending on style(Price includes washing cost)

*You can save more by using cloth wipes and washing them with your diapers, using you own wipe solution and making your own laundry soap.*

 Health Reasons:

Your skin is like a sponge- so consider what your putting next to your baby’s skin for the next 2-3 years, 24 hours a day.

 Disposables: 

Contain Sodium Polycrylate – the stuff that makes diapers super absorbent.  This chemical was banned in 1985 from use in tampons because it was linked to toxic shock syndrome! (NO STUDIES HAVE BEEN DONE ON HOW IT AFFECTS INFANTS).

Disposables also use dioxin to bleach the diaper materials white.  This chemical has been reported by the EPA as the “most toxic of all cancer linked chemicals”.  It’s use has been banned in most countries except the US.  It is known to cause damage to the central nervous system, kidneys and liver.  The FDA has reported: rashes, chemical burns, noxious chemical odors and plastic melting onto the skin.

 Diaper rash- 54% of 1 month olds in disposable diapers had rashes, 16% severe rashes.

 Cloth:

No harmful chemicals used or added to cloth diapers.  The only thing that can cause skin irritation is the laundry soap you use.  You control the chemicals your baby is exposed to.

 Diaper rash- only caused by food allergies, frequency of changes and properly sanitized diapers.

Environment:

 Disposables:

About 2 tons of non-biodegradable waste (82,000 tons of plastic and 1.8 million tons of wood pulp (1/4 million trees)) is consumed each year.  It is estimated that disposables take about 250-500 years to decompose! An estimated 5 million tons of untreated waste and 2 billion tons of urine, feces, plastic and paper go into landfills annually.  Disposables are the 3^rd largest single consumer item in landfills.  They generate 60 times more solid waste and use 20 times more raw materials to make, like crude oil and wood pulp.  The manufacture of disposable diapers amounts to 2-3 times more wastewater than cloth.

 Per manufactures instructions on the box you are to,“ empty contents into the toilet” when disposing of a soiled diaper.  How many parents actually do that?  Did you know it is against the law to dispose of human waste in landfills?  We could be polluting our drinking water!!

 Cloth:

All cloth diapers are made with reusable materials, like cotton and bamboo.  The life expectancy of a cloth diaper is 100-200 washes.  Many well made products can be used for multiple children.  There is no human waste going into the landfills, it goes into the sewer system with the other human waste. 

Washing cloth diapers at home uses about 50-70 gallons of water every 3 days, about the same as an adult flushing the toilet 5-6 times daily.  Cloth diapers usually only add 2-3 loads of laundry per week.

 Children tend to potty train earlier in cloth, because they can feel they are wet.  Children in disposables usually don’t feel they are wet.  Pull-ups have even put a new chemical in them for potty training purposes.

 Newer style cloth diapers are just as easy as disposables, with Velcro closures and no need to pre-soak. With only 2-3 additional loads of laundry and better health for both the planet and your baby, cloth is a viable choice.

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