I was forced into cloth diapering. I had no idea how easy and cost effective it was going to be. My seventh baby had a chronic rash for the first 9 months of his life. He had oozing, bleeding sores. We tried everything. Even steroid cream and that was really pushing it for me. Nothing worked except letting him go naked. We decided to switch to cloth diapers and his rash was gone within 3 to 4 days. I realized that it was a lot easier then I thought and if I used them on my other little guy in diapers and my little girl who still needed pull ups over night I would save $60.00 a month. My original supply was $150.00 so they paid for themselves within 3 months of using them. We discovered, had we used cloth diapers for all 7 of our children, we would have saved approximately $6,000.00 so far. Calculating the cost of generic brand diapers, I figured the savings is approximately $780.00 per child using cloth diapers and wipes if they potty train by 2 1/2. This was enough to convince me to use cloth diapers forever.
A friend of mine asked me to help give a class on the benefits of cloth diapering. I was excited to share how cost effective they were. I had know idea what else I would learn that day.
HEALTH
I've heard a saying "What you don't know won't hurt you". This was not the case for my little guy. Disposable diapers contain:
Dioxin: An extremely toxic by-product of the paper bleaching process. It is listed by the EPA as the most toxic of all cancer-linked chemicals. It has caused genetic defects in lab animals and is banned in most countries but not the U.S.
Tributyl-tin (TBT): A highly toxic pollutant that absorbs through the skin and even minute ammounts caused hormonal imbalances in humans and animals. It can also cause infertility.
Sodium Polyacrylate: A super absorbent polymer (SAP). It's the gel like substance that comes out when the diaper is too wet. It can cause allergic reactions, irritation, bleeding of the perineum or scrotal tissues, fever, vomiting, staph infection, and in 1985 was banned from being used in tampons because of it's link to Toxic Shock Syndrome. When injected into rats it caused internal hemorrhaging, cardiovascular failure and death.
Phyto estrogens: Just what it says "Estrogen". My baby boy's especially don't need any of this or God would have given it to them. The diaper area absorbs these chemicals very easily.
The emissions from ONE disposable diaper were high enough to produce asthma-like symptoms in rats.
ENVIRONMENT
I am not an environmentalist. I'm just a frugal mom who loves to stay home with my children and help my hard working husband. However, some of these facts were very interesting to me.
Over 300 lbs. of wood, 50 lbs of petroleum feed stocks and 20 lbs of chlorine are used to produce disposable diapers for one baby for one year.
Supposedly, a family can attribute 50% of their waste to disposable diapers. You could save money on your garbage bill!
10,000 tons of disposables are tossed into landfills each ear. That's 27.4 billion per year.
GIVEAWAY
Had I known what I know now, I would have switched to cloth diapers a long time ago. I've tried a few different kinds and have found what I think is the easiest to clean, the cheapest to buy, especially in the long run, and the cutest on. They are All In One Pocket Diapers. When I first looked at these they were very expensive. The name brands can run around $20-$30 a diaper. I've found them for a fraction of that and am giving 3 away (Courtesy of GoGreenPocketDiapers) to anyone who is willing to try cloth diapering.
This business was started by a mom just like us and her customer service is the best I've ever seen. Her diapers are cute and cheap. They have all snaps, no velcro to wear out. They are adjustable from newborn all the way up to toddlers. One stash of these will last you for many children, just a one time cost!
To enter, you have to be willing to try Cloth Diapering and not doing it already. Just leave a comment on this link or the facebook link and I will enter your name in a drawing. I will draw names in one week. Next Tuesday, November 2. (Wow, November already!!)
(Just a side note. A lot of these chemicals are in your menstrual pads too. I don't know about you but I don't need any extra hormones. Especially after I have a baby. I'm going to make some cloth pads and will be posting soon!)
16 comments:
I'm really need a few more before my little guy is 100% cloth diapered. I guess I don't really qualify since I currently have a pail of cloth diapers soaking by my washing machine.
VERY interesting facts. Thank you for sharing.
I LOVE the convenience of disposable but am expecting our second and not relishing the addition of $30 extra a month for another set of diapers. Although I'm hesitant to dish out the initial investment for cloth diapers when I'm not sure they'll be a good fit for us. So please enter me because I'm willing to give cloth diapering a try!
I <3 this post! Only 12-15 (doing a load everday at nap time or night time) keeps my 2 diaperd all day. Oh, and for me, bio-degradable, flushable liners that catch the solids makes all the difference for me!
Oh, and an alternative to cloth pads is the diva cup (www.divacup.com) for mensteral use only. Talk about saving $ and no chemicals, I even did a triathlon with it in!
This would be perfect for me! I am pregnant with my third child and have used disposables thus far. I almost tried cloth with my second and even went to a specialty shop, but I just didn't know what to choose and they were so darn expensive! Since I use couponing methods to buy my diapers, I usually pay only $1-$3 per pack so my cost savings would be less than most, but I know overall it would still be cheaper and, of course, I like that it would be healthier. I am definitely interested in trying cloth and this would be the perfect trial-run for me.
So I have been wanting to try cloth since my 1 year old was born but because I was working I just could not imagine doing it. I am now a stay at home mom and want to start. A friend gave me some cloth diapers and I used one today to test it out BUT they are really tight for my big little boy and because they are used the velcro does not stick very well. It seemed to absorb well and I think they look really cute. I would love to get some that would fit better. If I started today does that still count?
Carissa you are definitely in!
I have been going back and fourth about trying these but your blog might have just made my decision. Wow I had no idea what was in there. I am expecting my second in February so this would be perfect. I saw this through Alysun's facebook, hope thats okay.
I'd love to try the cloth diapers out! I think about this every time I put a disposable diaper on Sam.
Hi, I am pregnant with my second child and would love to try out the whole cloth diapering thing. With my first I used disposables and experienced a lot of rashes and sores. I went through many different types without much luck, there was a particular one that smelt of chemicals whenever he peed. It really pained me to see his butt was bright red yet again. So this time i am absolutely open to trying cloth diaper and have been searching for the most cost effective and the most bang-out-of-the-buck cloth diapers out there. These would be an amazing start up set to try.
Hi, I am a mom of four and my baby is one. I would love to use cloth diapers on her but the starting cost has stopped us. I looked up the basic ones online and tried to make one...didn't work. So, thanks, I would love to be put in your drawing!
If I would have know about this giveaway I would have waited another 7 years to start LOL, well maybe not, you might still be in sposies hehehe. Great idea Season!
Hey, I shared a link to your giveaway! And I also put up a pic of nola's cute safari diaper, here's the link to the post on my blog, which has a new name, A Quiverfull A Blessing Grand http://aquiverfullablessinggrand.blogspot.com/2010/10/cloth-diaper-giveaway.html
Anyway, I know I'm not eligible (pout), but wanted you to know that I shared your info with other mamas!
I have been dying to cloth diaper my little boy. He has the worst diaper rash all the time, I have to use this special numbing paste the doctor gives me! My husband got laid off right before he was born, so while he is trying to find a new job, we are so tight on money, the start up has kept us from doing it! I have been setting aside a little bit at a time, hopefully by the new year and finding out about Gogreen, we will be a cd family soon! Thank you for your review and facts!
I'm expecting my first in May 2011 and planning to cloth diaper. I came here because I'm doing a lot of research and found a link to you from GoGreen which is one of the top ones I am considering at the moment. So I would LOVE to win one!
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