Everyone know the typical reasons people cloth diaper. The environment. Saving money. Better for baby. Blah blah blah. (Just kidding, those are all important!)
Butt (ha! that typo was unintentional but it's funny so I'm leaving it in) there are some unexpected benefits to cloth diapering that you may not realize.
1. The Cute Factor
Fluffy butts are damn adorable. Diaper fabrics can be adorable. If you're using disposables, there's one option: white. Sometimes with cartoon characters. Oh, and there's the weird jeans diaper, and at Christmas you can get the Santa diaper (does anyone else think that those look weird printed on what is essentially paper??). So three options. With cloth? COUNTLESS. Each diaper change is like getting to change their outfit. It's fun collecting colors and prints that coordinate with outfits, and fun to get to pick out your favorites.
2. The Community Factor
No, not the show. Although that too. But the cloth diaper community is a strong, vibrant one and just the mention of cloth diapering can be an instant friendship-maker. Prepare to be completely drawn into the world of hippies...fair warning!
3. The No-Blow-Out Factor
Yeah, blow-outs are virtually unheard of with cloth. It's pretty amazing. Giant poops that go RIGHT UP TO THE EDGE of the elastic, but rarely come out. It's wonderful. In two years of CDing, I think we've had ONE blow-out, and that was user error.
4. The Earlier PLing Factor
Potty-learning is the PC way of saying potty training, because babies aren't dogs, yo. (Although...are we sure about that?). But studies have shown that cloth diapers lead to earlier potty training, for a multitude of reasons. That's always good, right?
5. The "Told You So" Factor
SO SATISFYING. You'll have naysayers left and right who say things like, "Sure....we'll see how that goes. You'll be in disposable diapers in a month!" Changing a cloth diaper in front of them a year later is extremely satisfying.
BONUS!
6. The "The Sun is Amazing" Factor
Watching the sun get stains out is like magic. It's kind of addicting. You'll see. I promise.
Ha! I love all of these! Especially the "I told you so" factor (SO TRUE)!
ReplyDeleteIf I choose cloth, it will be for the cuteness and to save money. All the other factors are not appealing-- especially the "I told you so" and the hippie community.
ReplyDeleteIt's just a fun, lighthearted list. Not meant to be taken seriously. :)
DeleteHonest brand diapers has cute prints. My DD was cloth diapered and we had to quit due to severe infections. It got so bad, that they had to fly in a specialist from Europe to diagnose what went wrong. Apparently. No matter how much you clean modern cloth diapers, they are not full clean unless you can bleach them like you would with flats. I used to rinse my daughters diapers 7-8 times per load of 10 diapers and still she got sick. The infectious disease specialist told me the reason was that the modern diapers cannot be fully cleaned and he said its a serious risk you run. Cloth diaper manufacturers will of course not reveal this info. Anyways, we ended up switching to "Eco" friendly disposables, but I'd we have another kid, I am totally only using flats, and bleaching them, as my parents did when I was younger. I wish the prone to infection aspect would be discussed more in the CD community, bc no one would like for their kid to go through 21 days of infections and back to back febrile seizures.
ReplyDeleteWe chose cloth to stay away from chemicals not for the reason of cuteness or money. We only used natural fibers, and it still wasn't as great. My daughter had no issues in disposables, she would have so many blowouts in cloth.
Thanks for that very valuable information. I was leaning towards cloth, but it's definitely not worth the risk of such a serious infection. I will definitely weigh my options more carefully
DeleteI've been cloth diapering for about 1 1/2 years now & really love it for all those reasons mentioned. We did have a few issues ourselves trying to find the right wash routine & detergent for my DD's skin, but other than that absolutely no problems.
DeleteWhile I'm sorry, your daughter had an infection, I think the likelihood of that occurring is very unlikely. I'm apart of quite a few CDing communities & have never once heard of that happening. However, I have heard of disposable diapers causing burns, rashes, etc quite often both from my friends & on the national news. So to tell someone that cloth diapers are basically "unclean" is a bit extreme.
Yeah, you're a frigging idiot. You have no idea what you're talking about.
DeleteHey, Anonymous....be nice to Anonymous! :P
DeleteI've cloth/disposable diapered more than 30 cousins, several siblings, and dozens of children I've nannied or babysat. Kids get rashes of they are left in a diaper too long regardless of the type of diaper, so I'm not really swayed by that. Still on the fence about my choice but, as I mentioned, the infection thing is quite serious and will definitely help determine my ultimate decision.
DeleteIf it's something you're concerned about, you could certainly use flats or prefolds, which can be bleached and fully cleaned according to the commenter.
DeleteI would be interested in hearing from more than one person on that. I actually have an aunt that's an administrator at a hospital and is over several departments including the ID department, and I know from her that cloth diapering is extremely popular.
ReplyDeleteMany people do use bleach each wash - BumGenius even recommends it. It's not something I'd do personally, but to each their own.
If it was true that CDs didn't get fully clean, I'd think that infections would be far more popular. Instead, anecdotal evidence suggests that kids who are CDed get fewer rashes or issues. I know my daughter's daycare has commented on the fact that she's never red and how rare that is! She's just one of many, of course, and perhaps she'd never be red in disposables, but we've had a great experience, as have many other people we know.
And as far as the blowouts, my guess would be that you didn't have the right fit. That's also incredibly rare.
Very sad they didn't work out for you, but your experience is definitely not the norm.
I love number 6, in fact my MIL and I were commenting on how we loved the son after I sun dried a stained diaper on the front porch today!
ReplyDeleteI'm new to cloth diapers and have felt overwhelmed with all the advice and choices out there. Thanks for the great reviews and keep them coming. The one thing that finally convinced me to do cloth diapers was if my mom can raise me on cloth diapers while working full time, then I really have no excuse, especially with all the new types of cloth diapers available. I will be using prefolds first and then we'll see how it goes.
ReplyDeleteI love your list. The community is a huge reason for me. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteCloth Diapers can be used again and are eco-friendly..
ReplyDeleteThey're super stretchy and the softest diaper I've felt. Nothing scratchy touching the baby, and since they stretch and fit comfortably snug no matter what, you never have a pile of left over diapers that don't fit him anymore, when they go up to a new size. They fit till the end, and they overlap each other in size rage so there are no weird periods of growth when he's an 'in-between' size.
ReplyDeleteI really love #2! I don't have ANY friends that cloth diaper their kids, but I've found a lot of support from friendly, welcoming, and nonjudgemental Mamas online!
ReplyDeleteThese five reasons for cloth diapers are really nice.Cloth diapering your baby is one of the best things you can do to help preserve our planet and save our landfills from toxic disposable diaper waste. You will also end up saving hundreds, if not thousands of your hard earned cash on diapers.
ReplyDeleteBaby cloth diapers
I think buying a cloth diapers for your kid is a good decision. cloth diapers are easily available & comes in so many different variety.
ReplyDeleteModern cloth nappies
http://www.minkiebaby.com.au/
I love the options! I use prefolds but I know its more popular to use pockets. There is something for everyone :)
ReplyDeleteThanks!!!!!! You've Given me not one but five reasons to switch to cloth diapering. Thanks a lot...!!!
ReplyDeleteI think some of the leaking problems people have are due to incorrect prep and washing so if you follow the directions and use the correct soap you shouldn't have a problem.
ReplyDeleteI’m interested in using biodegradable diapers but they are a little bit pricey and hard to find in Malaysia. What do you suggest?
ReplyDeleteWell its really important to maintain hygiene. I think not only the hygiene but its very important to have a good quality diape
ReplyDeleteI miss cloth diapering! I have two boys who were cloth diapered and it was so much fun, people don't believe me when I say that, but it really was. Its fun to see what prints and color combinations are coming out right now.
ReplyDeletehelllo, can i translate this post to my blog :) tks
ReplyDeleteTo avoid rashes one should be careful of the babies hygiene and use cloth diapers
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIt is a very much informative post written on Top 5 NEW Reasons to Cloth Diaper.
ReplyDeleteBest wishes from
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Hey!! Yes cloth diapers are good but you can't use that if you are going out for any functions or party for that you required premium diapers for your babies.
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