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By Cathy Baldwin
When I was first approached by my editor to write a story on cloth diapers versus disposables, I was almost eight months pregnant. With oodles of time on my hands to nest, daydream and prepare, I relished the thought of being an environmentally conscious mommy. What could be better than saving the environment and money at the same time? I eagerly accepted the task of writing this article and the challenge of using cloth diapers.
Five months later, with a 4-month-old bouncing baby boy, I wonder whatever possessed me to take on a project that wasn’t going to make my life any easier. The last thing I wanted to do at 4 in the morning was wash a poopy diaper. What was I thinking? My sweet little Sam goes through anywhere from eight to twelve diapers a day. It’s a challenge in itself to keep his little bottom dry with disposable diapers.
Still, the thought of doing my part to make this world just a little bit better for Sam made me want to give it an honest try. I dusted off the box of cloth diapers my mom had bought me before Sam was born. She had given me those along with pins and plastic diaper coverings just in case I felt ambitious or ran out of disposables. After all, she had used cloth diapers on my brothers and me. I thought if my mom did it for three kids, then I could do it for one. At least for a little while. I decided to try it for a week.
My week-long commitment ended after day one. It just wasn’t working out. Between the soiled diapers, wet outfits and nearly piercing my infant’s thigh, I decided that using cloth diapers wasn’t for me. Not being able to locate a local diaper service made the long-term prospect of using cloth diapers out of the question.
My conscience was guilt ridden. For me it was a choice between my sanity and doing something good for the environment. I’m sorry to say, my sanity won out.
Still, there are plenty of mommies out there that make their choices for cloth or disposables based on reasons that aren’t convenience related. I decided to dig a little deeper. So here it is, the straight “poop” on cloth versus disposables.
Ecological Impact With millions of tons of dirty diapers (not to mention untreated human waste) that pollute landfills, it’s hard not to feel responsible. Many moms wanting to reduce their environmental footprint make the choice to use cloth. Those living in bigger cities have the advantage of using a diaper service.
Some argue that cloth diapers are not necessarily that much greener than disposables when all factors are taken into account. Between the water used to clean them (if you do it yourself or have a service do it), the fuel used by the diaper service to pick up and drop off the diapers, and the initial environmental impact of manufacturing the diaper out of cotton, they are not without fault.
Watching the “Bottom” Line Another major reason many choose cloth diapers over disposables is the cost. While disposables diapers are a continual expense, averaging around 20 cents per diaper, cloth diapers are a fixed, one-time cost. Moms need to purchase their initial several dozen diapers, diaper pins and diaper covers, but after that, they’re done.
Of course, the cost of using a diaper service adds up over time. Washing the diapers at home saves money, but it’s not without some expense. The extra loads of laundry take their toll on the water bill as well as the grocery bill for detergent and bleach. In the end, however, it still is cheaper to use cloth diapers rather than disposables. And it’s even cheaper still if you choose to wash them at home.
Convenience Ah, convenience. If there’s anything that’ll convince a new mom to buy a product, it’s convenience. And that’s why disposable diapers are still the number one choice for today’s moms. There’s nothing convenient about washing soiled diapers, dealing with leaky cloth diapers, or trying to use a diaper pin to fasten a diaper on a squirmy toddler.
Cloth diaper advocates argue that adding one more load of laundry to the day’s chores is a small price to pay to keep the earth cleaner. And that’s a good point. Still, I know that finding time to get my other loads of laundry done (as well as dinner cooked, articles written, house cleaned, and family attended to), is easier said than done.
Potty-Training Versus Sleeping Through the Night Okay, here’s where mommies really have to pick their poison. One thing moms love about disposables is that they are great at wicking the moisture away from babies’ behinds. This means that babies who wet themselves during the night are less likely to wake up and need their diapers changed. And that translates to moms getting their blessed sleep.
This same pro for disposable diapers – their ability to keep babies’ bums dry – also turns into a con later on in toddlerhood. Because babies don’t enjoy being wet, and because cloth diapers don’t wick away moisture, babies who use cloth diapers tend to potty-train a little earlier than those who wear disposables. And a potty-trained toddler means no more diapers! Good news for mommy.
A Diaper for the Future There are a few companies now who are trying to bridge this gap between cloth and disposables. In the quest to be more environmentally conscious, these new diaper companies are making disposable inserts that snap into a diaper cover. There’s less actual diaper to dispose of, and many claim that these inserts are not only flushable, they biodegrade within a few months’ time. The only cons are that they’re considerably more expensive than disposables and not readily available in grocery stores.
Who Gets the “Bum” Rap? A lot of people wag their fingers at moms when the whole disposable-diapers-in-landfills discussion arises. I have to admit that I feel a fair amount of guilt still using disposables when I believe that cloth diapers are better for the environment. I wish there were a better choice out there for all of us. A choice that was easy on the environment, easy on the wallet, and easy on the moms. Until then, I’ll be diapering Sam with disposables and wrestling with my conscience.
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