Why I Use Cloth Diapers for My Baby – And You Should Too!

When I found that fellow mommies in the rest of the world are ‘Cloth Diapering’, I was shocked, to say the least! Was the world going backwards? But I soon found out that their idea of Cloth Diapers was very different from we in India term cloth diapers to be. In fact, choosing cloth diapers can be a great way to save money, create an environmental statement and promote your baby’s health.

Story Time

I never questioned the use of the traditional ‘langots’ because I did not know of any other option. It was a mess with my first born. The langots served no purpose and everything including the baby bed and her clothes would need to be washed every time she had to pee – and baby’s pee a LOT! I was pregnant with my second baby when I found out about cloth diapers – or what the rest of the world calls cloth diapers. They are colorful diapers made of waterproof, breathable material with absorbent inserts inside them. I ordered a set of 5 diapers and hid them in my hospital bag for the fear of offending the two ‘Moms’ in charge.

As luck would have it, it rained cats and dogs for 3 days after my baby was born. None of the diapers were drying fast enough to keep with the newborn’s rate of peeing. Then, I brought out my cloth diapers and it was nothing short of miraculous. The baby slept through several pees and the wraps and the blankets were untouched. Very soon, we had used up all five and due to the weather, none of them were drying very quickly. Going back to the traditional cloth diapers that we had, now seemed a big bother to everyone (including my Mom and my Mom-in-law). They asked me if I could order more and were genuinely disappointed to learn that it takes a month for them to arrive in India from China (they weren’t available in India 5 years back). As soon as I was able to sit up, I asked for the laptop and ordered 10 more. The wait was taxing, but at least they were there before my baby turned a month old. Subsequently, I ordered 5 more and with my stock of 20 diapers in different colors and prints, we had a blissful time compared to the diapering of our older child!

Types of Cloth Diapers

Here are some of the most common types of diapers. Some families choose to go with all of one type of diaper and some families mix and match depending on the occasion. Be careful, though: cute diapers can quickly become an addiction!

Prefold cloth diapers
With Cotton diapers
Cloth Diaper Covers
Pocket cloth diapers
All-in-one Cloth diapers
Hybrid Diapers

The ones I use are All-in-one Pocket Diapers. They have an outer pocket in which the microfiber inserts go in.

Cloth Diapers Vs. Disposable Diapers

Cloth diapers used to be the norm, because – well, let’s face it – that’s what was available. Because disposable diapers were invented and became popular, cloth diapers became something not everyone chose to do. Eventually, it began to be seen as more work for less benefits. In India, diapering parents are clearly divided into two. First, who follow the old school cloth diapering methods of using ‘langots’ that wet all the sheets every time the baby pisses. Second, who use disposable diapers as an alternative solution. What many parents in India do not realise that modern day ‘cloth diapers’ are a much, much advanced version of our traditional prefolds and offer a much higher absorbing capacity while protecting all your sheets.

You probably think of many reasons why cloth diapers are not for you. Perhaps the cost worries you. Maybe you’re worried about messy diaper leaks of cloth diapers. Or maybe you just do not know enough about cloth diapers to even formulate an opinion.

Cloth diapers have come a long way from rubber pants and diaper pins. Today there are literally dozens of choices. From simple all-in-ones (AIOs) to prefolds with wraps (not diaper pins on most), there are many choices to keep your baby covered.

Benefits of Cloth Diapers

There are many benefits of cloth diapers. Here are some of the most common:

Cost

Cloth diapering can cost a little money to start, but in the long run cloth diaper users are often ahead of the game of the expenditure. A small investment in the beginning can save you money on thousands of rupees spent on disposable diapers that you are going to spend in the next few years. Cloth diapers can be washed over and over again and continue to work effectively until your baby is potty trained.

Better for Baby’s skin

It is anybody’s guess that cloth is better for baby’s soft skin. Cloth diaper users tend to have less problem with diaper rash, sore bottoms, and other common symptoms of disposable diapers parents. Fewer chemicals touching the baby’s bottom and the less likely they are too sensitive. If you have a sensitive baby, you can choose from all natural, even biological, materials to use for diapers that go to your baby.

Better for the environment

Cloth diapers are re-usable and do not contrinute to the non-degradable waste like disposable diapers. You will, at the most, require 30-40 diapers for the lifetime of your diapering needs and even after that, cloth can still be recycled. Reduce, reuse and recycle concept means less waste for the environment.

My next point is going to be fiercely debated for some time, but in general it is found that cloth diapers do not take up space in landfills and take hundreds of years to break down.

Less time in Diapers

Many parents will tell you that they spent less time trying to potty train and educate their children about elimination communication (EC) when they used cloth diapers. Like your grandma probably told you, disposable diapers do not give the baby an indication of wetness at all and baby takes longer to get potty trained. Whereas, modern cloth diapers give the baby the right amount of wetness indication when full, without making the baby go cold because of wetness.

Baby Fashions!

With modern Indian parents getting more and more style conscious about their baby’s wardrobe, it is also important to look at cloth diapers as a fashion statement. Cloth diapers are cute! They come in fashionable colors and prints to match every ensemble.

Cleaning Cloth Diapers

Many mommies shy away from cloth diapers because cleaning them sounds yucky. Why bother removing poop from cloth diapers when you can simply throw away the disposable ones! But don’t give up on all the benefits of cloth diapers just yet. Here is how I clean my cloth diapers.

1. Install a health faucet (common in Indian toilets) or a ‘Diaper Spray’.
2. Use the spray to rinse off the poop directly into the toilet bowl immediately or shortly after. Don’t let it dry on the diaper.
3. Toss the diaper into the washing machine.
4. If the poop dries up, spray water and set aside for some time. The poop will loosen up. Remove it using the spray again and then machine wash it.

I cloth diaper during the day and use disposables for the night. I have successfully used cloth diapers for two babies and am very happy with the results as well as costs.