Nappies have been around in cloth form since the Elizabethan era in England. Although they were only squares of linen back then, they have been used ever since. If you are over the age of forty then the likelihood is that you wore cloth nappies when you were a child, but from the 1970s onwards more and more children wore disposable nappies. They were actually introduced in the 1940s but were not affordable for the average family until thirty years later. Now, they are more common than ever and brand after brand adorns the supermarket shelves, but why should we regress and use cloth nappies in the 21st Century?

There are a number of reasons why you should use eco friendly cloth nappies over disposables on your children. Whilst many of them relate to the environment, some also relate to the well-being of your child:

• Disposable nappies take, on average, 500 years to decompose. This is hotly debated because many experts have predicted that they will take much longer than that, but when you consider that disposable nappies actually account for one full black bin bag’s worth of trash every week per child then you get an idea of just how big a problems this is. 90% of nappies will end up in landfill sites so we are degrading the earth.
• Washing a disposable nappy 400 times is comparable to the manufacturing of one nappy in terms of the amount of energy that is used in both processes. This makes the cloth nappy far more energy efficient and in keeping with a greener lifestyle.
• The average baby will use over a thousand disposable nappies in one year, but would only need between twenty and thirty cloth nappies for the same period of time. Of course, some families would purchase more to accommodate physical growth, but the number is still nowhere near as large. In terms of the financial and environmental burden that the former brings, cloth nappies seem infinitely preferable.
• You can purchase environmentally friendly cloth nappies that are made of hemp, wool and organic cotton now so even the material that they are made with will not damage the environment! Not to mention the fact that they would be extremely kind on your little one’s skin.
• Finally, baby faeces that are left as rubbish for two weeks contains around 100 viruses on average. If you think about the fact that the faeces is not going through a proper sewerage treatment plant but is instead filtering through the groundwater system. It could actually make its way into your own water supply at a later date. You may want to seriously consider using cloth nappies. They are better all around for you, your family, and the environment in general so they are by far the better choice!

Yes, you heard us right, you can now put your baby’s sensitive bottom in a diaper that you can take off, throw in the toilet and flush away! This keeps the dirty, disposable diapers out of the landfills and helps keep the risk of ground water contamination low from your baby’s poop! You can flush your baby’s poop away so that it gets broken down properly in our sewage treatment facilities, safely treated and where the valuable nutrients can be utilized as biosolids. Best part is the flushable diapers consist of no chlorine, perfumes or dyes that could hurt your baby’s skin.

Environment
On the other end of the spectrum, people who do home composting for their gardens can add the diapers that are ONLY wet to their compost and use it to help their garden be healthy. The diapers will completely decompose within six months (vs. 500 years with your traditional disposable diaper), and your garden will love you!

Fashion
Not only are they easy to use, and help keep the stink out of your baby’s room, but they are fashionable as well! The diapers consist of a cover and an insert, much like a cloth diaper would. The covers have a snap in liner, which can be replaced if necessary, and the refills sit in these liners for easy removal and flushing. The covers come in a variety of fabric colors and patterns from solids to florals, and come in three sizes which your baby can wear all the way up to 35 pounds. The covers called “little g” pants can also be used as covers for your cloth diapers.

Cost
There are many questions you may be asking about when it comes to buying your flushable diaper. Among these is probably wondering where you can get them and how much they cost. You can order them online from www.gdiapers.com or you can buy them at your local Whole Foods Market or Wild Oats store. The diaper covers are approximately $15.00 a piece and the inserts range from $15.00 for a small package of refills to $45 for a larger package of refills. For some cost is not a problem when it comes to helping keep the environment safe and healthy for our children, grand children and even great grandchildren. In order to see if flushable diapers are for you, there is even a starter kit available that includes the inserts and covers for $25.00.

Controversy
There is a lot of controversy on whether or not these flushable diapers are really environmentally friendly. People question if it is just causing more build up of paper in the sewage system. Paper tends to decompose much faster than disposable diapers do so for some this may be a moot point. It is important that you do your research though regarding all options when it comes to diapering your baby so that you can make the best decision for your family and your family’s finances.

Cloth Diapers
Cloth diapers are very “vintage” and definitely making a come back. Every year more and more new moms fall for this relatively cheap way to diaper their baby. After the initial expense of the diapers and the wraps, the cost of cloth diapers is equal to the soap, water and the cost of the electricity or gas used for the dryer. Sure it takes time to wash those diapers, but most new moms will find themselves washing baby clothes on a near daily basis, and able to just throw the diapers in with their loads. For mom’s that don’t have time there are diaper services that will pick up the diapers and drop off clean ones for a nominal fee.

The downside of cloth diapers is having to wash them out when your baby has pooped and you have to carry plastic bags with you at all times to put the diapers in when you are out and you have to change your baby. This can be very inconvenient and smelly.

Disposable Diapers
While definitely less time consuming and in many peoples’ eyes more convenient, disposable diapers are much harder on the pocket book. At club stores like Sam’s and Costco you can buy a big box of diapers, approximately 250 size ones and 200 size threes for about $40. This is the cheapest you can find it. In a regular store like Wal-Mart, Target or a grocery store, you get a much lower number of diapers for a higher cost.

However you do not have to deal with the rinsing, washing, wraps, pins, etc with disposable diapers. You can take it off and throw it away whether you are at home or out shopping.

Brands of Diapers
With all the different brands of disposable diapers, how do you know which is best for your baby? There are three main brands Pampers, Luvs Huggies, and numerous other store brands available. Some moms will swear that one brand is best over another or that one brand never worked on their baby. In many ways this is true. Body shapes are as different for babies as they are for adults and each brand of diaper is made differently. You may even have two babies that can use one brand where your third baby can’t and you have to buy a different brand for him. If your baby seems to be having a lot of leaks from one brand, experiment by trying another brand to see if it works better. The brand of diaper may also change as your baby goes up in sizes.

Some parents will choose diapers based on choice, or based on the coupons that they have and can use. Collecting coupons and waiting for a sale on your favorite diaper can often save a lot of money.

The Little Details…
The disposable diaper companies all have different details to their brands of diapers. Pampers has Swaddlers and Cruisers, focusing on different ages and stages of your babies life. Huggies has their normal diaper, and their supreme diapers which seem to fit a little snugger. This again is an issue of trial and error. Which diaper works best and fits your baby’s body the best?

Sizes
Diapers come in six main sizes, only five of which most babies will go through. They come in preemie, newborn, size one, two, three, four and five. Most babies will be able to start off in newborn, although they may be able to fit in size one as well. Most toddlers will be into a size five before they are potty trained. Each size has a minimum and maximum weight listed on the packaging, but many times this is subjective based on your baby’s body type. If you feel like a diaper is fitting too snug, even if your baby has not reached the high end of the pounds listed, you can still move him up to the next size in order to see if your baby is more comfortable.