Why cloth?
On our homepage, we mentioned that cloth diapers are more healthy, more affordable, and way better for the environment. Let's get into more detail about how each of those statements is true.
MORE AFFORDABLE
Our most popular package is priced such that each diaper will cost you about 27 cents. Disposable diapers range anywhere from 27 to 60 cents or more! And many cloth diapers on the market today range from $10 to $25 each. That's about $1,000 for a week's worth of diapers that you will have to wash, dry and fold yourself!
Yes, if you purchase your own cloth diapers, they might last for a year or two if you take perfect care of them. But you have the added time and expense of washing and drying them yourself multiple times per week. Many people are hesitant to wash dirty diapers in the same washer they use to wash their clothes.
So a diaper service is not only more affordable, but more convenient, too!
BETTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
There is so much information for this section that we're still trying to condense it into an easy-to-read format. We should have this section of the website complete by August 21st, 2009. Until then, please see the following links for some helpful information.
Please read this article by Samantha Moller for more detailed information.
MORE HEALTHY
Babies wear diapers all day every day. It makes sense that you would want the most natural and healthy products against your baby's sensitive skin. Disposable diapers will not make your child sick or cause immediate major health problems for them, but they do contain a lot of poopy chemicals.
Disposable diapers contain traces of Dioxin, an extremely toxic by-product of the paper-bleaching process. It is a carcinogenic chemical, listed by the EPA as the most toxic of all cancer-linked chemicals. It is banned in most countries, but not the U.S. Read more about Dioxin here.
Disposable diapers contain Tributyl-tin (TBT) - a toxic pollutant known to cause hormonal problems in humans and animals. Read more about TBT here.
Disposable diapers contain sodium polyacrylate, a type of super absorbent polymer (SAP), which becomes a gel-like substance when wet. A similar substance had been used in super-absorbancy tampons until the early 1980s when it was revealed that the material increased the risk of toxic shock syndrome. Read more about sodium polyacrylate here.
In May 2000, the Archives of Disease in Childhood published research showing that scrotal temperature is increased in boys wearing disposable diapers, and that prolonged use of disposable diapers could blunt the physiological testicular cooling mechanism important for normal spermatogenesis. Read the article here (registration required).