Modern cloth diapering is not just ducky pins, plastic pants
Cloth Diapering is not exactly the norm these days. It’s estimated that a mere 10% of families are choosing cotton to cover their babies’ bottoms. Not quite a widespread phenomenon.
In fact, many parents of our parents’ generation chose disposable diapers, which back then was “the new advancement in diapering.” No mess. No Laundering. Just roll it up and toss. Sounds great and convenient. Back then, they just didn’t put much forethought into where all those diapers would go after use.
There are few parents who haven’t heard the statistics that it takes 500 years for a disposable diaper to decompose or that the average baby uses 8,000 diapers before being potty trained. The convenience of disposables versus the cost savings and environmental-friendliness of cloth poses quite a dilemma.
For a variety of reasons, I diapered my first child with disposables. Because I was never completely comfortable with it, I potty trained him at 2 years when he showed the first signs of interest. Thankfully, he happily trained quickly.
With my second child well into toddlerhood, I began to notice an increasing number of women in my social circle were choosing (adorable!) cloth for their babies. I decided to explore the subject to see if it would be a viable option for me so late in the game.
I met Lisa Clarke of greenearthbaby.com, a wonderful online cloth diapering shop, who graciously showed me the ropes. I also tested out g-diapers—a diaper that combines the convenience of disposables with the earth-friendliness of cloth. Both of these experiences have reassured me that convenience is not all it racked up to be.
I started to question myself as to why I hadn’t explored the option sooner. I headed to a host of national retailers to reinforce what the average American mom has at her easy access. I visited several local shops including Babies R Us, Toys R Us, Burlington Coat Factory’s “Baby Depot,” Target, and Kmart. (As a matter of personal choice, I do not patronize Wal-Mart and did not include them in my experiment.)
It turns out that the national retailers only carry the old-school rectangular cotton cloths that have to be folded, pinned and used with a plastic cover—the most inconvenient offering on the market. No fitted diapers and certainly no fitted diapers with sewn-in covers (all-in-ones) were to be found. The plastic covers for sale are the old elastic-legged, pull-on covers that aren’t exactly easy to put on a squirming child. It’s no wonder I hadn’t had exposure to cloth with my son. These selections showed no signs of representing 21st century advancements in technology.
Couple the lack of availability of cloth with the market saturation of disposables, and it’s not difficult to put two and two together. The big name companies have made billions of dollars by making it so easy to use disposables that most parents find them to be the obvious choice.
That is, until parents begin to realize that they could save thousands of dollars by using cloth, even with the extra water usage that’s required for laundering. Likewise, if more parents were aware that toddlers tend to potty train up to a year younger when diapered in cloth—and, thus be free of the whole ritual sooner—many may be swayed to switch.
Or, perhaps if the disadvantages were more widely known disposables may seem less attractive. One undesirable aspect of disposables is that they are saturated with a host of chemicals; a fact that presents health risk concerns such as asthma and of low sperm production post-puberty. And, of course, there is the ever-present issue of the environmental impact of non-decomposing plastic and rotting waste in dump sites that scientists say will likely become hosting grounds for disease. Not a pretty picture for our children’s future.
So, what’s a modern woman to do? The best place to buy and learn about cloth diapering is online. You can read countless reviews of brands, opinions about use as well as some incredibly compelling research. It’s the perfect forum to learn with zero pressure to buy. Then, it’s your choice to buy from an online store or search for a retailer in your area.
And, judging by the online testimonies of thousands of parents, you will be inspired to make that initial purchase of swaddlebees or kushies. And, like them, you will probably join the growing numbers of parents who have fell in love with using cloth on their baby’s bottoms.
See also:
Cloth Diapering at greenearthbaby.com
More great diapering information sites: