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Interested in
Cloth Diapering?
Read on to learn why you should,
how you can and the fun it can be! |
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Cloth
diaper styles and terms used.
Cloth Diapering Links (under
construction).
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Cloth diapering
today is not what it used to be. When many parents think
of cloth diapers they think of flat diapers that need to
be folded and fastened with diaper pins and then covered
with plastic pull on covers. Generally they also think
that the clean-up involved with using cloth diapers
would be tedious and messy. It seems as though many
parents have missed the total evolution of the cloth |
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diaper that
has occurred over the past decade or so. New choices in
materials and high tech fabrics are causing an
increasing number of parents to reconsider whether
disposable diapers are the best choice. We have options
now that provide us with cloth diapers that are
elasticized so that they are fitted and snug, waterproof
in many instances, breathable, and manageable with velcro-like closures or snaps. They are just as easy and
as convenient to use as disposables. Of course, it is
not just their functionality and convenience that has
been affected by this evolution either. Cloth diapers
available today are absolutely adorable, available in a
variety gorgeous colors, prints, and luxurious textures
and fabric. That is a big selling point for many parents
because there is nothing cute about a disposable diaper.
Quite simply, cloth diapers are convenient, cost
effective, healthier for our children, and better for
the environment. I feel as though the real question
parents should be asking themselves is why use
disposables? |
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Cloth Diapers
Are Cheaper Than Disposable Diapers...
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As a general rule, it is almost
always cheaper to reuse than to buy
new every time. This is no different
with cloth diapers. Most parents go
through 6 to 8 thousand diapers per
child, from birth to about age
three. If we take an average of what
those diapers cost, that equates to
between 2000 and 3000 dollars per
baby. Once those children are potty
trained those diapers are gone. They
can’t be re-used. So a significant
chunk of our heard earned money has
gone to buying, what is essentially,
garbage. In comparison, enough cloth
diapers to last for
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three years will
usually cost between 3 to 8 hundred
dollars. At minimum that is about a
1200 dollar savings. But wait,
consider too, that those cloth
diapers may last for one or more
successive children and your savings
doubles and even triples. Of course
it is difficult to make any hard and
fast statements in this regard
because of the varying costs of
diapers, electricity, water, and
detergents. Yes, cloth diapers will
usually mean an extra one to three
loads of laundry a week, but if
everyone were to weigh the extra
costs of their electricity, water
usage, and detergent, I think they
would be pleasantly surprised. These
costs are infinitesimal compared to
the cost of expensive disposable
diapers. |
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Cloth
Diapers Are Healthier For Your
Baby...
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What should be of serious concern to
all parents are the toxic chemicals
present in disposable diapers.
Dioxin, which in various forms has
been shown to cause cancer, birth
defects, liver damage, and skin
diseases, genetic damage, is a
by-product of the paper-bleaching
process used in manufacturing
disposable diapers, and trace
quantities may exist in the diapers
themselves. Dioxin is listed by the
EPA as the most toxic of cancer
related chemicals. Disposable
diapers contain Tributyl-tin (TBT) -
a toxic pollutant known to cause
hormonal problems in humans and
animals. Disposable diapers also
contain sodium polyacrylate. If you
have ever seen the gel-like, super
absorbant crystals in a disposable
than you have seen this first hand.
Sodium polyacrylate is the same
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substance that was removed from
tampons because of its link to toxic
shock syndrome. No studies have
been done on the long-term effects
of this chemical being in contact
with a baby's reproductive organs 24
hours a day for upwards of two
years. Studies have also been done
to show that the chemical emissions
from disposable diapers can cause
respiratory problems in children.
Cloth diapers, on the other hand,
are free of the many chemicals
contained in disposable diapers.
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Cloth Diapers
Are Better For The Environment...
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According to the Sustainability
Institute eighty percent of the
diaperings in this nation are done
with disposables. That comes to 18
BILLION diapers a year, just in the
US. They require thousands of tons
of plastic and hundreds of thousands
of trees to manufacture. After a few
hours of active service these
materials are trucked away,
primarily to landfills, where they
sit, neatly wrapped packages of
excrement, entombed or mummified,
undegraded for several hundred
years. The idea of a "disposable"
diaper is a myth, the ramifications
of which will stay with us for
centuries to come. They are the 3rd
largest single product in the waste
stream behind newspapers and
beverage containers. The urine and
feces in disposable diapers enter
landfills untreated, possibly
contaminating the ground water
supply. When you consider the
unnecessary depletion of our
valuable forests, the huge volume of
garbage created, the toxic air and
water pollution and the potential
health risks to children, it is very
difficult to comprehend how washing
and reusing cloth diapers could ever
be considered an |
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inconvenience. They are a rewarding
investment all around. A financial
investment, an investment in our
children’s health, and an investment
in our planet. |
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Cloth Diapers Are
Every Bit As Convenient As Disposable Diapers...
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The options
available today prove that cloth diapering
doesn't have to be inconvenient. Cloth diapers
nowadays are fitted with elastic in the legs and
back area, they have easy hook and loop closures
or snaps too. Many different fabric choices and
absorbency levels allow parents to choose the
best diapering system for their own individual
needs. It just can't get any easier. There is no
time like the present to make a firm commitment
to your child, to your pocket book, and to your
planet and start using cloth diapers today!
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