Why do YOU use cloth diapers?
- Thread starter ilovegod123
- Start date
fortybrandon
New member
@ilovegod123 This is an EXCELLENT post. My best friend is using compostable diapers and the way her math checked out was that was ACTUALLY the most "eco-friendly" option. But I think she has to send them to a commercial composting place, there's a diaper composting service where she lives.
I bought cloth diapers second hand (very barely used) and used them for three kids. So for me, the savings were large cost wise. I've also heard of earlier success at potty training using cloth, which was true for me (anecdotal of course based on comparisons with friends and family). So yea, I think you are right. I don't know how compelling this is. I have saved money though.
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I bought cloth diapers second hand (very barely used) and used them for three kids. So for me, the savings were large cost wise. I've also heard of earlier success at potty training using cloth, which was true for me (anecdotal of course based on comparisons with friends and family). So yea, I think you are right. I don't know how compelling this is. I have saved money though.
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ilovegod123
New member
@fortybrandon Environmentally, I’d bet that composting comes out on top. We have a municipal composted here but I haven’t been able to find any truly compostable single use diapers. And I’d bet those would cost a lot more, bringing the cost argument more in focus. Such a shame composting isn’t widely available.
@fortybrandon We don't have commercial composting within a 100 mile radius of us, do I keep telling my husband I should start a business doing that.
lovemonkey
New member
@ilovegod123 FTM, never cloth diapered (or any other diapered), but here’s my two cents if you like.
I’ve been around babies that have been exclusively disposable-diapered, and I’ve seen them in diapers till they were three, have a hard time potty training, and struggle with rash (which might not be a disposable-specific problem)
On the other hand, where I grew up, babies are mostly bottom naked the first few months of life or in very thin, breathable, mostly repurposed/upcycled cloth, they know when they are wet, and are usually trained to be out of diapers by the time they walk, which coincides with when they usually start on regular solids.
Uncommon perspective, but we wouldn’t leave adults to sit in their own body fluids if we could help it, but often that’s what we do with babies and diapers as it’s convenient for the pace of life we’ve set ourselves. I would personally prefer to train my baby early to eliminate on their own, it is super common in my culture. Additionally, it has the advantage of being environmentally friendly - because much much fewer diapers overall, cloth or disposable.
So where does cloth come in? Ideally I’d use thin cloth fabrics with muslin folds inside that are meant to absorb, not contain. That means I would go through more cloth every day, changing for every pee, but because it’s so thin, I can wash the cloth by hand with dettol and a bar of laundry soap, and linedry. The hardest thing would be establishing the routine.
Then I can use regular cloth diapers or disposables for nights and outings. But if coupled with regular elimination cue-based training, it is possible to not use a whole lot of these guys, so the net environmental impact will be far far less.
At least, that’s the theory.
But it has been done, so I’m hoping I can do it too
*
Pulling a new person into the planet is willy nilly an extra drain on the world’s resources - to that extent. So there will be environmental costs. I don’t believe in all or nothing solutions, but being mindful of small decisions, doing things in a self-reliant way as much as possible, these are ways to reduce impact in my experience.
Elimination communication or even using cloth based diapering that requires extensive personal effort on part of the caretaker is of course dependent on one’s personal circumstances. Not all parents have the time and energy to invest in this. But I’m starting to think that a little loss of worldly productivity is a good thing in a sense if one can personally afford it. To that extent, I don’t tax the environment, and in the meanwhile, raise my child more mindfully.
Of course, as with all parenting soapbox discourses, YMMV
I’ve been around babies that have been exclusively disposable-diapered, and I’ve seen them in diapers till they were three, have a hard time potty training, and struggle with rash (which might not be a disposable-specific problem)
On the other hand, where I grew up, babies are mostly bottom naked the first few months of life or in very thin, breathable, mostly repurposed/upcycled cloth, they know when they are wet, and are usually trained to be out of diapers by the time they walk, which coincides with when they usually start on regular solids.
Uncommon perspective, but we wouldn’t leave adults to sit in their own body fluids if we could help it, but often that’s what we do with babies and diapers as it’s convenient for the pace of life we’ve set ourselves. I would personally prefer to train my baby early to eliminate on their own, it is super common in my culture. Additionally, it has the advantage of being environmentally friendly - because much much fewer diapers overall, cloth or disposable.
So where does cloth come in? Ideally I’d use thin cloth fabrics with muslin folds inside that are meant to absorb, not contain. That means I would go through more cloth every day, changing for every pee, but because it’s so thin, I can wash the cloth by hand with dettol and a bar of laundry soap, and linedry. The hardest thing would be establishing the routine.
Then I can use regular cloth diapers or disposables for nights and outings. But if coupled with regular elimination cue-based training, it is possible to not use a whole lot of these guys, so the net environmental impact will be far far less.
At least, that’s the theory.
But it has been done, so I’m hoping I can do it too
*
Pulling a new person into the planet is willy nilly an extra drain on the world’s resources - to that extent. So there will be environmental costs. I don’t believe in all or nothing solutions, but being mindful of small decisions, doing things in a self-reliant way as much as possible, these are ways to reduce impact in my experience.
Elimination communication or even using cloth based diapering that requires extensive personal effort on part of the caretaker is of course dependent on one’s personal circumstances. Not all parents have the time and energy to invest in this. But I’m starting to think that a little loss of worldly productivity is a good thing in a sense if one can personally afford it. To that extent, I don’t tax the environment, and in the meanwhile, raise my child more mindfully.
Of course, as with all parenting soapbox discourses, YMMV
ilovegod123
New member
@lovemonkey The potty training is a really good point. I wonder about the cause there though. I just read a fantastic but really long article on parenting/childhood anxiety, and they mention potty training. It used to be that most kids were potty trained by 18 months but now it’s 3+. They cite parents who aren’t willing to suffer short term pain for long term gain to do the hard work until they absolutely have to (school requiring being out of diapers).
I wonder whether it is cloth diapers magically helping potty train, or parents who are cloth diapering are more likely to want to potty train early (especially as there’s added benefit to stopping the additional work of cloth diapering). Everyone doing cloth diapering has already demonstrated they can handle short term more work for long term gain (less money spent, lower waste...)
I wonder whether it is cloth diapers magically helping potty train, or parents who are cloth diapering are more likely to want to potty train early (especially as there’s added benefit to stopping the additional work of cloth diapering). Everyone doing cloth diapering has already demonstrated they can handle short term more work for long term gain (less money spent, lower waste...)
lovemonkey
New member
@ilovegod123 I don’t think cloth diapering magically helps to potty train. I think the feeling of wetness that comes with using cloth and changing repeatedly (as opposed to using feel-dry disposables) trains the child to associate the potty/toilet with feeling dry for longer periods of time, eventually resulting in greater success in the toilet. The toilet becomes something that they prefer actively to peeing in their diaper if offered regularly because they can avoid feeling wet that way. Whereas that incentive doesnt exist with disposables.