The Truth About Disposable Diapers

Cloth diapers have a greater advantage by being reusable. They may be better known as reusable diapers, but that is not as appealing as the term cloth diapers. Cloth diapers are softer your babys skin. Because they can be used over and over, cloth diapers can last much longer, cost far less, and do not contribute to landfills.

One advantage is that cloth diapers do not contain harmful chemicals that some disposable diapers have. Disposable diapers have been known to contain Dioxin. This substance is also used for bleaching paper. Do you want that touching your baby's skin? This material has been banned in most countries. However, it is still sold in the United States. Another toxin found in disposable diapers is Tributyl-tin or TBT. It contains toxic pollutants that have been found to cause hormonal problems in certain animals and humans.


Sodium polyacrylate is another potentially harmful chemical used in disposable diapers. It changes into a gel-like substance when it gets wet. A similar substance was used in certain feminine tampons until it was discovered to cause toxic shock syndrome in certain situations. A health survey has discovered that using disposable diapers could harm the testicular cooling mechanism in males.

A baby on average needs to be changed between 2000 to 3000 times per year. The price of disposable diapers averages about 25 cents and brand names diapers are around 38 cents each. The average cost per diaper comes to around 32 cents. So, your monthly cost for each child would be around 78.00 every month.

With cloth diapers, they may be a little more expensive to buy in the beginning, but they will save you money in the long run because you can reuse them. If cloth diapers are cared for properly, they can last a very long time and through several children. Wash them regularly with soft detergents that wont irritate your babys skin.

You may want to try both types of diapers for one month each to see which one you and your baby like. In the long run, you will definitely see the cost savings using cloth diapers, but its probably a good idea to have some disposable diapers on hand as a backup.