Cloth Diapers vs. Disposable Diapers

Now before you read any further, I want you to throw away your notions of what cloth diapers are and how they work. They've come a long way in the past decade. They come in cute colors and prints now, and can be put on just as easily as a disposable diaper. In addition to them being much easier to use, cloth diapers are a great for 3 reasons:

1. HEALTH (Reduce incidence of Diaper Rash)

Disposable diapers are made of ingredients including plastic, synthetic rubber, oil and tree pulp. These ingredients and the process by which they are made and put together can be unhealthy for a baby. For example, the tree pulp in diapers is often bleached to make it white. Combine that with the use of synthetic materials like plastic and rubber - its no wonder that according to the Journal of Pediatrics 63% of babies using disposable diapers develop a diaper rash within the first 8 weeks of life. Compare that with only 7% for babies using cloth diapers.
*Note: Facts taken from article by Real Diaper Association

2. BUDGET (Save up to $2900)

To cloth diaper a baby from birth to potty training will cost between $100 and $700. If this seems high, consider that it costs $1800 to $3000 to diaper a baby with disposable diapers for the same time period. Double that number if you have twins!

3. ENVIRONMENT (Do your part for the planet)

Disposable diapers are made from plastic, synthetic rubber, oil and tree pulp. As a result, more than 18 billion disposable diapers end up in our landfills every year - equalling 80,000 pounds of plastic tossed and 200,000 trees cut down a year.