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Baby products make up a huge industry that caters to millions of parents, infants, and young children around the world. Of these products, diapers are among the most important of all due to them being essential items for all newborns up until the little ones have been successfully toilet trained. Babies go through thousands of diaper changes until they turn two or three, which means they rely on good-quality baby diapers to stay clean and comfortable day in and day out.
The biggest discussion on baby diapers concerns whether the cloth or disposable variety is better. Each type of diaper has its own set of staunch supporters, who swear by the type of diaper they have used for their babies.
Traditional cloth diapers consist of a piece of soft cotton cloth wrapped around a baby’s waist and secured on both sides with safety pins. While some people still use this type of diaper, modern cloth diapers have changed a lot. Not only are they more stylish now, but they also feature an outer layer made of waterproof material, which prevents leaks from getting on to furnishings or clothes. The closure is often made of Velcro, which is reminiscent of disposable diapers.
The biggest advantage of cloth diapers over disposable ones is perhaps the material. Since they are made of natural and absorbent fabrics, they absorb wetness well and do not irritate a baby’s ultra-delicate skin. There are numerous kinds of cloth diapers, which means parents will have more options for their babies. To increase a diaper’s absorbency, you can purchase an insert and put it inside the cloth diaper.
However, using cloth diapers requires more work for the parents as they have to wash the soiled diapers every day. There also has to be a small bucket or pail in the baby’s room so that it will be easier to collect dirty cloth diapers and soak them. Cloth diapers are also said to be more eco-friendly than disposable diapers. The latter reportedly take almost 500 years to completely decompose and apparently contain various chemicals.
Disposable diapers, on the other hand, offer convenience. Changing a baby’s nappy takes a shorter amount of time and the baby can wear it much longer than cloth diapers. To throw away disposable diapers, parents must gather and store them in a pail until they are collected by the garbage truck. Leakage from disposable diapers is minimal and the adhesive tapes on both sides keep them secure. Some parents combine the use of cloth and disposable diapers to prevent their baby from getting a diaper rash. The cloth diaper is used mainly during the day
I kinda wish that I would have used cloth diapers with my son. I think him actually feeling wetness in his diaper early one would have made potty training easier. I used disposables with all of the kids because I remember the old days of the ugly cloth diapers with safety pins. I remember the stinky garbage pail and didn’t want to deal with the mess.
Cloth diapers do not have to be more work. I wash only 3 times a week and never soak. No more work than having to go to the store and buy disposables that I would literally throw away.