Cloth Diapers: Debunking The Myths
ATTENTION: Don’t miss the cloth diaper giveaway at the bottom of this post!
A fresh look at cloth diapers
Eat, poop, sleep. That pretty much rounds out the list of accomplishments that you can expect for at least the first few months of your new baby’s life. So it’s no wonder that these three issues…feeding, diapering, and sleeping are the ones that most new parents become so obsessed about.
The great diaper debate, in particular, is one that can elicit passionate responses on both sides of the spectrum. Well, I’m not here to tell you what to do. As parents, we all have to figure out what will work best in our own homes and with our own children. But I am here to debunk the myths that continually pop up in diapering conversations. Here are some cloth diapering facts I thought you should know:
MYTH: Cloth diapers are icky
FACT: I can’t help but chuckle whenever I hear someone say that they don’t want to use cloth diapers because they don’t want to touch poop. Trust me, after your new baby is born, touching poop will be the least of your worries. On a daily basis, you will find yourself covered with such a wide variety of excrement and bodily fluids, that a little poop will probably go unnoticed. Yes, poop is icky, but if you think disposable diapers will somehow protect you from these precious little bundles, you obviously have never witnessed baby poop firsthand.
MYTH: Cloth diapers are time consuming
FACT: Here’s the deal….back in olden days, cloth diapers required a complicated fold, safety pins, and special waterproof pants. And yes, the typical cloth diaper change back then probably did take about 5 seconds longer than the typical disposable diaper change. But have you looked at cloth diapers lately? They now come in prefolded, all-in-one models that simply snap and go. The only difference between a cloth diaper change and a disposable diaper change now is that with cloth you toss the used diaper in the washing machine instead of the trash. Time is no longer a factor.
MYTH: Cloth diapers are expensive
FACT: Take one look at a cloth diaper catalog or website and you may feel a bit of sticker shock. No doubt, investing a hundred or so dollars up front in cloth diapers is more expensive than buying a pack of disposables for $20. But just think how quickly those $20s will add up. The average baby is likely to need a new pack of disposables every 2 weeks. Do the math…you’ll spend $240 in disposables diapers in just 6 months. Study after study after study after study has concluded that using cloth diapers can save you thousands of dollars over the course of your child’s diapering career. That’s a fact.
MYTH: Cloth diapers are no better for the environment than disposables
FACT: The disposable diaper industry has long contended that the cloth diapers have just as big of an environmental impact as disposables because they require energy and water to wash. This theory was more or less substantiated by a flawed 2005 British study that found no difference between the eco-impact of cloth vs. disposable diapers. How do I know this study was flawed? Because I read it. And not just the press release that came from it. I read the actual study and I looked at it not only as a mom of two, and as a green parent, but also as a scientist (did I mention that I have a Master’s in Environmental Science?) Here’s why this study is flawed:
- The study surveyed 2,183 parents; 2,000 of whom used disposable diapers, 183 used cloth diaper. It doesn’t take a scientist to know that these numbers don’t add up. The study’s results are neither balanced nor conclusive.
- The study did NOT take into account the measures that many cloth diapering parents take to minimize their use of both water and energy (such as using Energy-Star rated laundry machines, washing full loads, line drying, and washing in warm instead of hot water.)
- The study did NOT account for the fact that in most cases, cloth diapers are passed on to subsequent children (either to siblings or to friends) thereby dramatically reducing their initial environmental impact.
- The study only looked at one type of cloth diaper (a terry cloth diaper) that is traditionally more energy intensive to dry than other types of cloth diapers.
Need another great reason to try cloth diapers? How about a free trial pack? That’s right, today’s contest is for a starter pack of 4 Fuzzi Bunz diapers….you pick the sizes and colors that work best for you. Now, this is the brand that I used on my youngest and I can tell you right now that they rock. But the best endorsement of all comes from my daughter. The first time I put one on her, she got a gleam in her eye and said, “soft.” You just can’t make that stuff up! Here’s how to enter:
There’s 3 ways to enter:
1. Subscribe to The Green Parent via RSS or Email. If you’re already a subscriber, just leave me a comment below and say so!
2. Join The Green Parents Forum (already a member? leave a comment below!)
3. Spread the word about this contest via Twitter, Stumble, Digg, Facebook, MySpace, etc.
Leave a comment below each time you do one of these things...each comment equals one entry. The winning comment will be chosen by Random.org. Contest ends Sunday!
Here are your random numbers:
5
Timestamp: 2008-09-22 10:32:11 UTC
Congrats Charlotte!!
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