Diapering The Landfills

Hi, friends.  I was going to write about cleaning with vinegar and baking soda this week, but one of my fellow mommies (Hi, Amber!) asked me to look into disposable diapers.  The timing is actually perfect, because I am in the process of transitioning to cloth diapers for Babydoll.  See?  I really will research something if you just ask.  (Another mommy friend asked me to research infant formulas, so that will be forthcoming in the very near future.  Maybe two blogs in one week!  How do I do it all???)

So, back when I was gestating Babydoll, I did look into cloth diapering her.  Unfortunately, I got some bad information and in my worn-out, hormonal, physically and mentally inbalanced state, I didn't pursue it.  I was also met with opposition from Babydoll's Daddy (hereafter referred to as "BD"), and at the time, it was much more important to me to fight with him over baby names, than what would cover our baby's butt.  Picking my battles...whatever.

We are currently using Seventh Generation's disposable diapers.  We've used them since birth.  In my opinion (and you know I'm full of them), these diapers are the way to go if you're traveling the disposable route.  They cost about the same as Pampers or Huggies, but have much fewer chemicals.  They don't have those stupid, cutesy cartoon characters on them (which was incentive enough for me).  They are chlorine-free, so they are a nice, soothing taupe color, rather than snowy white, and they're fragrance-free, so you don't get that "Grandma's Bathroom" scent like other brands" (Pampers, I'm addressing you).  Also, these diapers just generally kicked ass (ha).  No blow-outs, no leakage, no issues whatsoever.

So, if the diapers we're using are so freakin' awesome, why am I switching to cloth?  Here's one of my infamous lists!

1.  The ingredients in disposable diapers (including Seventh Generation's) are primarily petroleum-based, which is a non-renewable resource and a big environmental headache.  Remember the Deepwater Horizon disaster (big-ass oil spill) in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010?  They were drilling for petroleum, aka crude oil.

2.  Some of the chemicals in disposable diapers are carcinogenic (cancer-causing), namely Dioxins, which is a side effect of the bleaching process used in most disposables.  Dioxins are a bad, bad mofo.  The EPA lists it amongst the "dirty dozen" of environmental pollutants.  Do you want that kind of shite against your kiddo's skin?  I don't.

3.  All disposable diapers use Sodium Polyacrylate, which is a super-absorbent gel.  Have you ever changed a baby and found little crystals on his/her butt?  Those crystals are SAP that has leaked from the diaper.  It's a chemical.  Back in the 80's, a similar substance was linked to toxic shock syndrome (ladies, you know what that is, don't you?).  Yikes, dude.

4.  Environmentally, disposable diapers are a nightmare.  The Real Diaper Association estimates that somewhere around 27 billion disposable diapers are used in the United States every year.  They also estimate that 92% of those diapers end up in the landfills (hence the catchy title of this week's post).  In addition to that, it's not really known how long it takes for a disposable to biodegrade, but they estimate somewhere between 250 and 500 years.  That seems like an awfully long time to me (sarcasm is just another one of my attributes).

5.  I can't speak for every parent, but I'm spending about $50 a month on disposables.  If Babydoll isn't potty trained until, say, 2 1/2 years old (the national average), then I will have spent somewhere between $1500 and $2000 on diapers.  By comparison, I can spend between $300 and $500 on cloth diapers that will last between now and when she uses the potty like a big girl (come on, Babydoll!  Poop for Mama!).  That savings is a down payment on a car, or a jump start to Babydoll's college fund (and since Berkeley will probably cost like a million dollars by the time she's ready to go, I think the fiscally smart thing to do is use the savings for a new car now.  Right?).

By the way, Pampers' website crashed my computer.  Twice.  F you, Pampers.  You and your DryMax can go to hell.

*Earth's Best also makes a more eco-friendly diaper (they use corn and wheat by-products to absorb moisture).  We tried them, and they just didn't fit Babydoll well.  Plus, we got a few leaks (probably because the fit was bad).  They also use inks and dyes.  No bueno.

I can't wait for my first order of cloth diapers to come (any day now)!  BD is still hesitant about using them, but I think once he sees that the all-in-ones I ordered are as easy as disposables, he'll be cool with it.  Send good vibes, friends.  I really want this to work for our family.

As always, feel free to ask me anything (within reason).