Diapers Q&A

Should our baby use cloth diapers?

What are the pros and cons of using cloth diapers? We noticed little gel balls (that come from disposable diapers) on our baby boy when diapering him -- is this bad? Also, cloth diapers are more economical (in the long run) and environmentally friendly. Has anyone switched to cloth and gone back? Thanks!

Public Comments

1. i liked using cloth diapers for my first (also a boy) and then used the disposables for my second (a girl) but only b/c it was a hassle doing ALL of that laundry and it was too hard to keep up with it all. but if you're interested (and have the money to do it) there are diaper services that will bring clean diapers to your home every week and will take away the dirties and clean them for you.
2. You get the gel balls from letting him get too wet!!!! Use luvs! They are cheaper and great!!!!!!! Cloth diapers to me, are disgusting!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Change him after he's wet and not keep letting him wet in the same diaper. When a poop happens, throw it away in a plastic bag!!!!!!!! Cloth diapers have to be washed and they definetly do not absorb!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
3. I cloth diaper. It can be more work but is better over all. And, yes those little gel balls are not good. In the typical diaper the gel they use to suck up wetness can cause blindness if it gets into the babies eyes. If you want to no more than run a yahoo search on cloth diapering. There is lots of info. out there.
4. If you go cloth, use a diaper service.
5. I see it as which is worse, adding waste to landfills (even though most municipalities no longer use landfills) or running tons of water to clean the cloth ones. You're using up resources either way, so let the baby go bare bottomed! Kidding! I struggled with the little gel balls too, they're only in pampers I think! Switch to Huggies. They don't have that crazy gel. If you can afford the cloth diapers I say go for it, but I don't think they work nearly as well as the disposable kind. Maybe they're ok for #1, but yuck for #2...
6. If you can get some really thick cloth diapers like in days gone by you would surely save a bundle on that, and i would definetly applaud you if you will use those cloth diapers you will need about 24 for your baby, and just be a dedicated mother by having patience to wash your child diapers when they are soiled, that was the only thing in days gone by there were no substitute and they did work fine i wore them and it was a pleasure, smile.
7. Don't use diapers, use Elimination Communication.
8. Oh, I was one of those mothers that was "only the natural stuff for my baby". I wasn't going to use disposable diapers for anything, and that cloth was the way for me. Yeah, that lasted all of a week. I switched to the Target brand of diapers for my baby. The pros: Yeah, it is great for the environment, and also it is better for the baby's skin, for cloth breaths well. And it is cheaper overall to purchase a set of cloth diapers and wash and reuse them. The cons: It is easier to dispose of the dirty diaper than rinse and wash it, and it does create a better barrier agains gaps and leaks, causing less accidents due to a diaper moving in the pants. There are also no pins involved, so no chance of sticking yourself or the baby when the baby decides that they want to run, and not be changed. And it is much quicker to change a disposable diaper than a cloth one. The little balls that you are noticing is from the inside of the diaper. This usually happens when a rip in the liner occures, or you let the diaper get too full. Sometimes a change in brands will be the simple fix, but once in a while you may still see them. I don't think they are harmful if they are just there, and the kid doesn't ingest them. When you see them, use a washcloth and wash them off. That is what I did when I found them. My daughter is now 17 months old, and still going strong in disposable diapers. Good luck!!
9. my mom used cloth diapers on me only because i was allergic to disposable the little gel balls are from the diaper being too wet change him often to prevent diaper rash
10. I used cloth nappies for 4 months but I stopped because I din't like the type of nappies I was using - prefolds. They went all rough and they were very bulky, her trusers wouldn't fit over them! Also I hated scraping the poo off them and I used liners but they got all crunched up and the poo missed them. THey were a lot cheaper though. If you do decide to switch then use a shaped nappy or terry nappies, dont use prefold squares they are a nightmare!
11. My mom used cloth diapers with all of us kids. (7 and one on the way) My youngest brother developed a rash, so she switched him to disposable ones. She plans on using cloth again with the next one. I will most likely use them with my children as well. (Even though I don't particuarly like cleaning them)
12. Depending on a few factors 1. the brand- if the brand is cheap you'll have cheap results... sometimes you get what you pay for 2.The time- a diaper is supposed to stay on a baby for so many hours and minutes until it wear and tears... If it is wet for to long it will have those little ball things..... I have a kid and i alway made sure that she was not wet for to long and changedher by a certain time frame. Now Cloth diapers are god but very costly they help with allergies for babies skin. But Maintenance- washing them every day having enough and laundry detergent usage will apply....They are not disposable and you will have to clean them as soon as you take them off of the baby..Imagine babies wet and you change a baby every 1-1/2to 2 hours thats about12 diapers a day that you will have to wash every day...and still have enough to use to change baby with daily...I have used the cloth and the diapers i guaranteed that convience will set in and living in a fast paced world you'll learn to endure the disposable diapers. Suggestion- would be to use the disposable diapers keep up on the wetness and use a good brand...
13. Not much good for advice on this, but the little gel balls come if he's been in a diaper too long. They're safe, but I'd consider changing him more frequently.
14. Cloth diapers are definitely more environmentaly responsible than disposables. Some may argue that you're using resources to wash the diapers, but they seem to forget that besides filling up the landfills, disposables require massive amounts of chemicals, energy and resources to manufacture. You've already experienced the chemical (gel) balls on your baby's skin... that was enough to get me to switch. Most cloth diapers these days are very absorbant, very cute, and extremely easy to use. Yeah, you'll pay a little more for them up front, but you're going to save in the long run, especially if you have more kids. And washing them is not a big deal. We wash every other day - we put them in a designated laundry basket until wash day, which ensures adequate air circulation, and never have a problem with odor. If you use an unscented, biodegradable, natural detergent (such as Charlie's Soap), it takes very little to clean them and they always come out smelling fresh! Plus, if your baby is breastfed you won't have to pre-rinse the dirty diapers because breastmilk stools are water soluble. My husband and I both work full time and have no problem keeping up with the wash - we go through about 6-8 diapers a day with our 7-month old. Check out www.diaperpin.com for lots of great info!
15. If you want tons of cloth info, I'm here. People always comment about cloth here that have never tried it-so don't listen to them. Cloth is definatley move environmentally friendly. People always say "well you run so much water and detergent". If that statement was true-we should all wear paper clothes. I only use a few tablespoons of detergent in each load and the water used equals the amount that I'd have to flush the toilet if my son was using it. I don't use bleach either! Here's some facts on the environment and health http://www.realdiaperassociation.org/diaperfacts.php I switched over a year ago. My mother was going to pay for diaper service (we're hippies lol) but it wasn't available where I lived. So I held my breath and used disposables. My son had bleeding nasty rashes-I changed him every hour and he'd still break out. that gel stuff can be toxic! Once I switched to cloth-no more rashes! He even had diarrhea this week-no rash! There are many options available, check out the directories at http://www.diaperpin.com/home.asp and http://www.diaperjungle.com/ I mostly have fuzzi bunz (pocket diapers), but I also have fitteds, prefolds, and covers. I like fuzzi bunz because I can stuff a few inserts or prefolds in there for overnight, travel, or naps. On wash day (I have enough to wash every other day), I run a cold cycle to lift stains, then a hot cycle with the few tablespoons of detergent (list of safe detergent here http://www.pinstripesandpolkadots.com/detergentchoices.htm). If it's nice outside, I line dry to conserve energy. Otherwise I just throw them in the dryer or if it's evening, I put the covers and fuzzi bunz on a line inside the house to dry-they don't take that long! I even have travelled down the country with my son in cloth 3x this last year. I use "wet bags" to store the dirty ones in. At home I just use a regular dry pail which is a trash can with a good sealed lid. I also love the fact that I will be able to use these diapers on future children, I never have to run out in the middle of the night to buy a pack of disposables, and I really feel like I am making a healthy choice for my son and the earth. If you have any questions, send me a message.