MILITARY~MOMMY`s poll Show results | Hide results

daisymae (201.1 days ago)
I use LUVS and LOVE them! I have actually never known anyone that uses cloth diapers and I have worked with children or around children for over a decade. I think it`s a nice idea but it doesn`t fly with me. And no I don`t feel bad about it all. What I WOULD feel bad about it continually making people on this site feel like crap. It`s the same people every time. So sad.

armymom (201.3 days ago)
haha Blondie.. I`m quite `red` myself.. I love DISPOSABLE everything! I love anything that makes my life easier and I have to agree that environment extremists really turn me off... Neverpreggers, I don`t see how you have so little laundry. Between my husband, the baby, and me we have a load every other day at least! I`m pro disposable and that`s what works for me and my family... we have a HUGE trash can full of bags of trash every week and I feel NO guilt. =P

soon2be3 (201.4 days ago)
Hi Milmom! You started an excellent debate. I am environmentally minded too, but never have used cloth. I am going to be honest and say that I am simply too lazy. I do about 100 other things though that help balance out my carbon footprint and my family`s impact on our environment.

If you are going to go cloth, please also consider looking for organic cloth diapers. Not trying to start anything here, but I attended a conference and learned an interesting fact...cotton comprises only 3% of farmland, but uses 25% of the world`s pesticides.

thebigtomato (201.4 days ago)
My guy sleeps from 8pm to 7:30am in the same diaper. I used to change him when he woke at 5am for a bottle, but now that he doesn`t wake at all anymore I don`t wake him. His diaper really isn`t THAT wet in the mornings anymore now that he`s drinking whole milk instead of formula (yes, I formula fed too *ghasp!*)...

-avasmama- (201.4 days ago)
My babe doesn`t get a change in the middle of the night either :)

BraxtonsMommy0516 (201.4 days ago)
My son is almost a year old and sleeps 12 hours a night and YES in the same diaper! I don`t dare wake him up to change his diaper in the middle of the night. At this age we are trying to break or have broken the middle of the night wakings why ruin that?

sharafly (201.4 days ago)
I will also stand up and say that my son, who is almost one year, sleeps from 7:30pm to 6:30am in the same diaper. And the only time he`s gotten diaper rash was from one particular brand of diapers. We`ve changed brands, and no more rash.

3girls2008 (201.4 days ago)
so i will be the one to stand up and say my daughter is 11 mo old and sleeps from 630pm to 630am every night and yes in the same diaper the whole time!

summerisis (201.4 days ago)
After reading everyone`s comments we`ve decided to go back to cloth but wash them ourselves. Thanks everyone.

NeverPreggers (201.5 days ago)
I know some would say that the rubber/plastic pants that you `have` to use with cloth would create the same heat, if not more, however, there are a lot of covers out there that are breathable and alow for airflow without leakage. I am not surprised about the link to asthma. Another link to asthma is labor induction and unnecessary c-sections. My understanding is that labor starts when the baby`s lungs are ready and they secrete a horomone that begins the initial labor process. If you haven`t gone into labor yet, it is very likely that your baby`s lungs have not fully developed so pulling the baby out of the womb prematurely must surely effect the lungs in a negative way, my connection: asthma.

tommiesmommy (201.5 days ago)
1999 A study, `Acute Respiratory Effects of Diaper Emissions,` in the October issue of Archives of Environmental Health, finds that laboratory mice exposed to various brands of disposable diapers suffered eye, nose, and throat irritation, including bronchoconstriction similar to that of an asthma attack. Chemicals released from the diapers included toluene, xylene, ethylbenzene, styrene, and isopropylbenzene, among others. The lead author of the study, Dr. Rosalind C. Anderson, advises asthmatic mothers to avoid exposure to these chemicals. Asthma rates are on a sharp incline in the US and worldwide, particularly among poor and inner-city children. Six leading brands of cotton and disposable diapers are tested. Of these, three are found not to affect the breathing of mice: American Fiber and Finishing Co., Gladrags organic cotton diapers, and Tender Care disposable diapers. Cloth diapers are not found to cause respiratory problems among mice.

2000 German study links use of plastic diapers to male infertility. The mean scrotal temperature is significantly higher in all age groups during the periods of plastic diaper use. Plastic diapers seriously undermine the body`s natural ability to keep the scrotum and testicles cool. The researchers call for further research on the impact of increased testicular temperature in infancy on later sperm production. (`Scrotal Temperature is Increased in Disposable Plastic Lined Nappies,` Archives of Disease in Childhood 83, October 2000.)

This includes G-diapers.

ermsmom (201.5 days ago)
I was using disposables but am now making the transition to cloth. My main deterrent was the laundry and having poopy diapers around but now I`m realizing it`s easier than I thought. I have a few of the Bum Genius diapers which are just about as easy to put on as a disposable diaper. They might take a few extra seconds but it`s no big deal. The laundry isn`t really a biggie since I do laundry every day anyway. It`s actually not bad with the poopy diapers since I just wash most of it away in the toilet anyway. That beats having a full poopy diaper sitting in the diaper genie. I have yet to touch poop. I will definitely have a stash of disposables on hand though. We tend to take a lot of road trips and I`m not really into keeping a dirty diaper with me in a hot car. If we`re out and about I`d rather be able to toss the dirty diaper rather than holding it in my bag for hours. Ick. Overall it is a cost thing. The ones I`ve been getting are pretty expensive up front but then I have to figure I`d probably spend that much in two months on disposables and I`ll be able to use these on all of my children for years.

Goldenmama37 (201.5 days ago)
I`ll use cloth diapers...when my husband helps with the wash. HA! HA! :) I`d pay a little more for environmentally friendly disposable ones...are there any?

MelissaJoanne (201.5 days ago)
I love cloth diapering. I can`t compare it firsthand to `disposable` diapers, because I haven`t used them. I bought a pack of prefolds here and there, and one of the gDiaper `little g` pants or another cover every few months, so I never had a huge start-up cost. I made my own fleece doublers (they wick the wetness off the body. She`s never had a rash). I cloth diaper part time and EC when she`s not in a diap. Dirty ones sit in a bin with baking soda, so there`s no odor, and I wash the whole bunch of them once a week. (One load of her clothes + one load of diapers - it`s never very much laundry). They`ve never leaked, and I do change her very frequently, mainly because I don`t like the idea of her sitting around in her own urine. I`ll be able to use the same prefolds with subsequent children (actually a few of my prefolds are left over from when my mom used them on me + my brothers!).

weeblette (201.5 days ago)
I use the g-diaper system....disposible but biodegradable. I can`t have cloth out in the country because our well wouldn`t support me doing any more laundry than we do. I looked into a diaper services but they don`t deliver and pick up where we live. I think we have made the best possible choice given our circumstances.

3girls2008 (201.5 days ago)
on the potty training i have always used disposable diapers and my older daughters were potty trained just after two its not the diaper co its the parents who dont want to put the time and effort (cause its not easy) into doing it, again lets keep the comments to those of us who choose not to use cloth diapers nice

~amy~ (201.5 days ago)
I have considered it but don`t have the money from the huge cost to start :( I don`t like seeing the HUGE bag of disposables going into the dumpster cause I think gosh there are millions of these bags coming from everywhere!

5against1 (201.5 days ago)
my reason, and 1 I do feel guilty for, is actually routine and convenience 4 me. she is #5 for me and my 4 older travel almost daily for activities and I am a single mom taking care of her completely on my own. I find i have 2 do everything out of convenience. i breastfeed cause w my busy life her food is always ready and the perfect temp(among the many other reasons), i wear her because i can get everythin done while givin her tons of my attention at the same time, leaving her always happy and content, i use disposables cause its just convenience when out 2 pull 1 outta the diaper bag, wipe her and throw it out and pop on a new 1. and i feel even MORE guilt because i go through soo many, because like christinaswar said `leave babies in pee for 12 hours?? yuck..i totally agree w that, and since she does sleep 12 hrs, i change her a few times durin the nite cause i dont want her waking up in 12 hrs of her own build up of waste just so i can sleep better.

Khloes Mommy (201.5 days ago)
I was going to but didn`t simply because I live in an apartment and have to go to the laundry mat to do our wash. I would not want dirty ones sitting around until I can get to go do wash & services were way to expensive. Blondie your childish! Don't you have anything better to do, like I don't know take care of those two babies???? Can't we all just grow up & act like mothers?

tommiesmommy (201.5 days ago)
Khloes mommy - I responded to your poll with the same thing. Not fair that it got deleted. Some people should really check themselves, talk about juvinile and a bad role model.

sharafly (201.5 days ago)
You`d be suprised how quickly laundry can pile up! I feel like I never have enough time to do all the laundry in my house. I obviously wear a different outfit every day to work, both of my children wear a different outfit every day to school and daycare, then come home filthy and have to change their clothes again. We all three take baths every day, so the towels pile up. Not to mention we all three sleep in separate beds, so there are three separate sets of sheets and blankets. And I don`t have the biggest washer in the world either. It`s the same one I`ve had for like 8 years now because I can`t afford to get a bigger or better one. So two more loads of laundry per week in my house is just too much haha! :)

3girls2008 (201.5 days ago)
laundry only once a week? wow i would love that! i am doing laundry everyday atleast 2 loads but then again i have 3 kids and a husband who changes 2x a day lol i use disposable and dont feel guilty and i am like alot of moms on here i recycle where i can and i think cloth diapers are like anything a new mom (or repeat mom) works out its your family your baby your decision! kudos who do and kudos who dont

ChristinasWar (201.5 days ago)
My daughter used cloth part-time for 8 months (part-time meaning she wasnt in diapers at all over half the time) and is in undies full time now. I probably only spent $60 all together! I had 3 newborn covers and two med covers and two packs of prefolds. I have no idea how much sposies cost but I KNOW I have saved TONS of money and spared the enviroment. Go ahead and argue that my 1 extra load of laundry washing in natural cleaners a week for 8 months is anywhere comparable to 2+ years of sposies, wipes and the plastic bags come in and are thrown away in sitting in a landfill for 500+ years.

tommiesmommy (201.5 days ago)
I love how blondie actually becomes happy after offending someone...Good role model.

NeverPreggers (201.6 days ago)
I agree that start up costs seem a bit prohibitive if you`re already spending so much just to have the kid in the first place! Lord knows I`ve spent enough on doctor`s fees! So far I`ve only spent $91 on the start up but I forsee that I will probably have to spend a little more, because nothing ever quite works out the way you want it to. In the long run it is cheaper but if you can`t afford the initial cost of cloth diapering, I can see that it would not be an option. I admire aprilraine for trying EC as that can make a huge difference in the money spent on disposables. I`ve never tried it, as I hadn`t heard of it when I was caring for my cousins (full time) when they were little. As far as the laundry piling up, I really don`t see where all that laundry comes from. I know that right now it`s only my husband and myself in our house, but we barely have enough dirty laundry to fill the washer once per week and that includes our towels, sheets and both our clothes in one wash. Also, all our laundry water goes to water our lawn in the front (away from the dogs and chickens.) So I really don`t look at it as a strain on the environment to do two more loads of laundry per week.

aprilraine (201.6 days ago)
My answer wasn`t an option... I wanted to go cloth, but the cheapest start up set to buy in my area was $320 and I couldn`t afford it. We are part time ECing now, and it is going OK so far (he is 5 weeks old) We do use disposables at night and when we aren`t at home.

ChristinasWar (201.6 days ago)
Leaving babies in pee for 12 hours?? YUCK!

amber325 (201.6 days ago)
wow someone calling other moms a failure b/c we have different desires/ needs/ ways to care for our children IS WRONG! HOW DARE YOU PASS ANY JUDGMENT!

-avasmama- (201.6 days ago)
I think if someone has tried it, what better person to take advice from. You don`t necissarily have to stop your research there, but I would want to hear from someone even if they failed at something. Their point of view is valid also. Not everything is going to work for every person. At least she (gr8scott, if that is who you are referring to) tried.

sharafly (201.6 days ago)
I don`t use cloth diapers, but I don`t feel guilty about it either. I do what I can to help the environment when I can in other ways, but disposables are practical for me. I am a single working parent, which means I don`t have hours and hours rinsing out and washing and disinfecting cloth diapers. I barely have time to wash the regular loads of laundry that pile up without adding to it. Not to mention the fact that my son is in daycare, and they do not allow cloth diapers there. They said there is special licensing they have to get and they just aren`t going to do that.

xolblondieox (201.6 days ago)
Thank you NeverPreggers, you gave me just the reaction I wanted :-) It`s just too easy

-avasmama- (201.6 days ago)
I use disposeable and I don`t feel any guilt at all. We do an unimagineable amount of recycling in this household so I think we make up for it. My husband is even in the recycling industry. I would say we do our part.

tommiesmommy (201.6 days ago)
I love cloth. They don`t leak, they aren`t hard to take care of (maybe ONE extra -small- load a week) I make my own, so they aren`t expensive and my son has YET to have a diaper rash. Sposies are so bad for the environment, even those `g-diapers.` Plus, they are SO cute! I just made one that had guitars all over it!

gr8scottswife (201.6 days ago)
Once you factor in doing the laundry every other day or every day, you aren`t helping the earth much, and you aren`t saving much money overall. For me, I never could get them to really work right. I tried different folds, and I tried at different stages. I mean, after all, I spent tons of money on cloth diapers because I had in mind to use them exclusively. Ada usually peed immediately after getting the diaper on. Then, it leaked even with extra liners inside. I had to turn around and put on another diaper. So, after a few times of trying the cloth diapers, I said to heck with it and resigned myself to the disposable diapers, which takes me about 20 seconds to change, and I don`t think about it once I`ve finished. I have no wash bucket to deal with, filling it up, all that stuff, and I don`t have extra laundry to do. I`m happy with the disposable diapers. Plus, as blondie said, the disposables really pull the urine away from the skin. Ada has never had a rash. Sometimes, I can`t tell if she has peed in her diapers or not unless they start weighing 3 lbs after waking up the next morning.

amber325 (201.6 days ago)
sorry I am now laughing at the way this is going. I do not feel guilty either for using disposables....or the plastic Gerber food containers, or my drop in liner bottles or 1000`s of baby wipes.(I just started to take the grocery bags back to the store...that is how I recycle lol)

NeverPreggers (201.6 days ago)
I may not HAVE any of my own kids, but I`ve done enough dirty work raising other people`s kids, that I don`t need somebody criticizing me because I haven`t given birth. I`ve probably changed more diapers than most of you combined. I ran an infant nursery at a daycare for five and a half years and raised two of my cousins. I`ve dealt with both cloth and disposables and had to deal with more than just two kids in the house at one time. So, blondie, I don`t think that comment was called for.

NeverPreggers (201.6 days ago)
I think if everyone only used disposables once in a while for special occasions or emergencies, I wouldn`t feel so guilty about it, but because there are people out there that don`t even care about the environment at all and the sustainability of the earth, I feel like I have to care twice as much to make up for others. If I were to use disposables, I think I would have to be even more uptight about everything else just to make up for it. This is not meant to criticize anyone, it`s not like I hate people who use disposables or anything, I just feel a huge weight on my shoulders because I feel like I have to take on more because others don`t take on any of the responsibility for helping the earth survive the human race.

xolblondieox (201.6 days ago)
Yeah, I feel no guilt either. I guess you could call me `red`--- or whatever the opposite of green is :-0 Mostly because of extremists that turn me right off to it all. NeverPreggers, wait until you actually HAVE a kid and then come chat with us about such things.

Lou-Li (201.6 days ago)
I agree with hotpotaaaaato but I do fee1 gui1ty about not using c1oth nappies. I might start. But at first I cou1d not have even dreamed of it, with two tiny newborns to breastfeed and c1ean up after, there was no way I cou1d`ve done the c1oth nappy thing, especia11y since I was recovering from a c-section etc. I wou1dn`t have been ab1e to cope. But I might start using them now, even though 1aundry a1ready takes up so much of my time and energy. Twins makes a huge difference to your energy. Had I had one, then probab1y I wou1d have had a11 the good intentions neverpreggers has! but... nevermind, maybe I wi11 switch over now.

NeverPreggers (201.6 days ago)
Personally I don`t see how anyone would not choose cloth. I would feel so guilty even using one disposable on my baby. I realize it is inconvenient and a little nasty to some, but I feel like using a disposable is just creating more nonbiodegradable waste. I think everyone should be responsible for their own waste disposal on their own property. I have about one small grocery bag of real garbage per week, if that much, and adding plastic and chemical filled diapers to that is way too much for my concience.

amber325 (201.7 days ago)
they seem to cost too much...and you need to clean them! I would rather throw the dirty ones away and keep it moving!

xolblondieox (201.7 days ago)
The fact that I have not one but two newborns! lol Plus I do not feel that they can do an adequate job at pulling away the urine and moisture to keep it off my bebies` skin. My Luvs can hond my kids all night (12 hours) and never leak. No diaper rashes and man those things weigh like 3 lbs by 8am. If I did uever use them, I`d do it to save money, not any other reason :-/

nmck (201.8 days ago)
I was old enough to help and remember when my mom used cloth diapers with some of my brothers and sisters. My brother had such sensitive skin. He always had nasty diaper rashes, and would have to be changed the minute he wet his diaper.

terise (201.9 days ago)
I wont lie, I`m just too lazy, I can barely keep up with the washing for our family and cant imagine adding to it. This will be my 4th child and I`m reeeeeally busy.

summerisis (201.9 days ago)
I used cloth but had a diaper service so I didn`t have to wash. When hubby and I lost our jobs we cut back that luxury item. I miss the cloth diapers!!!!

hotpotaaaaato (202 days ago)
I can barely keep up with laundry as is!



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