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Why Use Cloth?
I believe that if parents were better informed about the impact disposable diapers have on our environment and our children they might be disillusioned by the disposable diaper industry and consider the alternative--cloth diapering their babies. Who wouldn't want their baby to brag that their child is both environmentally aware and adorable? Consider the below information* when making your decision to use cloth or disposables.
Chemicals on baby's skin:
Disposable diapers are loaded with synthetic chemicals and their by-products. Disposable diapers contain:
Sodium Polyacrylate—this makes the diaper super absorbent. It is reported to cause severe skin irritations, fever, vomiting, and staph infections in babies. It was banned from tampons in 1985 due to its link with Toxic Shock Syndrome.
Dioxin—this is the chemical by-product of the paper bleaching process, using chlorine gas, in the manufacturing of diapers. It is carcinogenic and the EPA lists it as the MOST TOXIC of all cancer-linked chemicals.
Tributyltin—an environmental pollutant, considered highly toxic, that spreads through the skin and has a hormone-like effect in the smallest concentrations.
According to the Journal of Pediatrics, 54% of one-month old babies using disposable diapers had rashes. Of those 16% were severe rashes. Widespread diaper rash is a fairly new phenomenon that surfaced along with disposable diapers. Reasons for more rashes include allergies to chemicals, lack of air, higher temperatures because plastic retains body heat, and babies are probably changed less often because they feel dry when wet.
Environmental Impact
Each year the diaper industry uses 3.4 billion gallons of oil and over 250,000 trees to manufacture the 18 billion diapers that end up in our overburdened landfills. It takes 1 cup of crude oil to make the plastic in one disposable diaper.
>A baby wearing disposable diapers from birth to potty training age will generate nearly 1 ton of diaper waste for our landfills. Currently diapers are the third largest single consumer item in landfills representing 30% of non-biodegradable waste.
>A single disposable diaper takes between 200 - 500 years to decompose. One made from cotton takes 1-6 months to decompose but will be reused hundreds of times before being thrown out.
>Most people do not dispose of the solid waste in their baby's diapers before putting them in the trash can and all that waste ends up at the landfill contaminating our land & water and attracting bugs that transmit and carry diseases.
It is time for us all to make an effort to leave our world a cleaner, better place for our children to live in. Although my contribution may be small, I personally believe that every little bit helps.
Cost Comparison:
Your child could use 6500-7000 disposable diapers from birth to
potty training (0-30 months) for a total cost of about $2451
(including wipes). If you choose Fuzzi Bunz your child will need
about 36 diapers (12 small, 12 medium, 12 large @ $16.95 each) for a
total cost of $610.
That's a total savings of about $1842 if you use cloth diapers
instead of disposables!
*sources: Sierra Club, Californians Against Waste, Rhode Island Solid Waste Management Agency, Lehrberguer Report on the Impact of Diapers on the Environment, Greenpeace, Environmental Defense Fund, Center for Policy Alternatives