Busting Cloth Nappy Myths
There are a lot of arguments against cloth nappies out there and I wanted to clear some misconceptions up around the topic. I've made this little article to share the truth about 6 common ideas people have about using reusable nappies. Let's get down to business and bust some myths!
Myth 1: They are gross
Do you know what's gross? Human waste trapped in synthetic material for hundreds of years inside a putrid landfill. About THREE THOUSAND of them a year for one baby!
With cloth nappies, the waste gets washed off (back to nature if your waster is directed to the garden and treated by council water treatment facilities if it just goes down the drain) and then the clean nappy is good to use again (and again for years).
Did you know it's estimated that 5% of our landfills are just dirty nappies... Pretty gross!
Myth 2: They are hard to make work
They are definitely not part of the mainstream culture so the norm is to think that maintaining nappies are a lot of hard work.
The good thing is with the age of the internet and the online culture of Facebook support groups, most issues you might run into, you can receive lots of advice and tips to make them work from you. Doing something like making cloth nappies work is all about making something work because you value it. Like showering and personal hygiene, it takes a little time each day to make it work, but you value it so it becomes an essential part of your lifestyle.
Myth 3: They use a lot of water
Ahh yes, I did wonder about the environmental effects of this. What I learned was that there is large amounts of water (and other resources) are used in the production of disposable nappies.
An assessment carried out by the University of Queensland found that the amount of water is used in the production of disposable nappies is the same as the amount used to produce and continue washing cotton reusable nappies. That study was done using an old method of soaking nappies uses more water than the Modern Cloth Nappy care routine, so using MCN even less water is used.
Myth 4: They are expensive
If someone is used to paying less than a dollar for a disposable nappy, when you see the prices of modern cloth nappies, it can look expensive. It is important to know that a baby in disposables could go through 3000 nappies a year and cloth nappies can be used hundreds of times if cared for properly.
You can buy bundles of preloved, clean nappies really cheap. The 'expensive' nappies over $25 are usually handmade by small businesses (often mums) or are very good quality and built to last years and several children. There are also cheaper nappies as low as $12 produces in factories offshore. Even buying new quality nappies from small businesses, in less than a year you will save money compared to using disposables.
Myth 5: They are uncomfortable for the baby
Many people unfamiliar with cloth nappies make comments about the nappy looking big and uncomfortable for the baby. In reality, cloth nappies are much better quality and have inbuilt comfort features, like proper elastic (which also prevent poop blowouts) and soft fabrics. I also feel the cushioning of the absorbent insert help provide protection of their sensitive parts.
Myth 6: They are weird
You're weird! No, in all seriousness. I am all about rebelling from the disconnected way of living that we accept as normal and returning to what is normal is in the context of nature and sustaining life on this planet.
Taking responsibility for the impact we have on the planet has not been normal but let's normalize it! The good news is, it is already becoming normalized and all the pretty fashionable patterns available have even made cloth nappies cool and trendy!
There you go! Myths busted!
At first, cloth nappies were a bit to get my head around and took time to get used to the routine but the more I used them, the more I LOVED using them.
Rather than having the mindset of "I have to wash and fold all these nappies", I like to think "I love that I get to wash and clean all these nappies to use again."
