Cloth diapers that is.  I don’t exactly remember when I first started thinking about using cloth diapers, but I think it was while I was living and working in Israel.  A good friend of mine was expecting her first child and I did a lot of research to help her navigate all the information out there.  While doing all that researching I came across cloth diapers and how they were better for your baby, the environment and your wallet.  I was sold.  Even though it would be close to 4 years later that I would be expecting my first child, I knew I wanted to use cloth diapers.

So why cloth?  Here are my reasons:

1.  They are better for your baby.  Babies who are kept in cloth diapers generally get changed more often because they can feel when they are wet sooner, which results in fewer diaper rashes.  *However it should be noted that if you don’t change your child’s diaper soon after they have wet or soiled it, the “ increased skin wetness, may lead to increased friction and increased abrasion damage, skin permeability, and microbial growth.”  This is a fairly old study, and there have been many advances in cloth diapers since then, such as the use of fabrics like micro-fleece that wick the moisture away from the skin, leaving your baby feeling dry. Personally, I would prefer to change my baby’s diaper promptly anyway, because who wants to hang out in their own waste? *

2.  Children who are cloth diapered generally potty train at a younger age because they learn what it feels like to be wet.

3.  It is better for the environment, although only slightly.  Disposable diapers are estimated to take 250-500 years to decompose and represent 4% of all solid waste.  In fact disposables are the third largest single consumer item in landfills.  Even though this is really gross, when you look at the issue from a Life Course Perspective, the cumulative water requirements, waste water particulates and environmental emissions associated with laundering cloth diapers at home outweighs those associated with using disposable diapers. While, the cumulative solid waste volume of disposables is far greater than that of cloth.  However when you factor in the energy value of converting raw cotton and trees into these products, disposables and cloth diapers (that are laundered at home) have about the same impact, while cloth diapers that are laundered using a diaper service come out a little bit ahead.   Check out THIS article for all the specifics, the cloth vs. disposables portion begins on page 11.  Now, many people argue that there are many ways to wash cloth diapers that don’t have such a negative environmental impact, this includes using energy-efficient machines, line drying and using the correct water temperature as opposed to very hot water.  So this point could be up for debate.  *I will say however, that whether you choose to use cloth or disposable diapers the only proper disposal of poop is in the toilet.  Most people who use disposable diapers don’t take the time to dump the poop in the toilet before throwing the diaper out and this has HUGELY negative public health consequences.  Human feces are about as foul and bacteria riddled as anything comes and when you throw it in the trash it can get into the soil and water and then you have e. coli contamination or cholera outbreaks.  Something to think about.  HERE’S a statement by the APHA on the topic.*

4.  It is easier on your wallet.  When using disposable diapers you will spend roughly $1500-$2500 from birth to potty training PER child.  With cloth there are so many options that you could spend anywhere from $200 for a basic stash to around $800 on a large and fancy stash and that stash will generally last you through multiple children AND you can even sell them and recoup some of the cost once you’re done using them.  That’s a HUGE savings for something that your child is just pooping and peeing in anyway.

So there you have my reasons for going cloth.  I know a lot of parents out there also site the cuteness factor as a reason that they love using cloth diapers, but I can’t really speak to that yet.  I’ll definitely let you know more once my child is actually born.

Stay tuned to learn all about my cloth diaper stash!