Diapers are an essential for every household. Unlike other items such as single-use plastic water bottles which you can easily replace with a reusable bottle, diapers are a need that can only be replaced with, well, diapers! Thankfully, several companies have started making eco friendly diapers, which essentially look and feel like the same pooping pants for your baby, but are much more sustainable for the environment.
Here are 5 reasons why you should buy eco friendly diapers instead of traditional ones for your baby.
Diapers make up a big chunk of household trash
I’m pretty sure everyone reading this already has a baby and knows what I’m talking about, but for those mothers-to-be who are reading this, you’re in for a wild ride. You’ll be surprised by the amount of poop that comes out of such a small bundle of joy. In fact, you’d be seeing yourself change the baby’s diaper more often than the amount of times everyone else in your house uses the restroom, combined!
Naturally, with the increasing diaper changes, so does the trash. According to healthline.com, an average of 10 diapers per day are required for a newborn baby, so you can imagine the amount of diapers that end up in a landfill each day. Diapers can’t really be reused (in most cases, unless you’re using one of those reusable cloth diapers), so why not send eco friendly diapers made from sustainable materials instead of the plastic-based traditional ones.
Single-use diapers are not biodegradable
Unsurprisingly, single-use diapers are made from mostly plastic, therefore are not biodegradable. Being non-biodegradable, plastic itself poses a huge problem, especially in the oceans. Even if the diapers don’t end up in the oceans, millions of them being deposited in landfills each day themselves are a threat to the environment.
Since eco friendly diapers are mostly biodegradable, they are easily the more suitable choice for your baby. These diapers are made from various sustainable items such as corn resin, and even the cotton inside is replaced by a more sustainable alternative (such as bamboo), which makes it not just more sustainable on the outside, but also the inside.
Diapers are not recyclable
Another major drawback when it comes to diapers are that they are not recyclable. Since diapers are made from several layers of materials (not to mention being completely covered in poop once they’re thrown out), diapers can in no way be recycled into other, more useful items.
In fact, even eco friendly diapers are not recyclable because of similar reasons, but since they are biodegradable, they are much safer than plastic-based non recyclable diapers ending up in landfills.
Regular diapers contain harmful chemicals
One major drawback that comes with buying traditional diapers is the eye popping amount of chemicals that are infused within them. These chemicals include, but are not limited to, TBTs, Phthalates, Sodium Polyacrylate and VOCs. Although these chemicals may not be as harmful when on your baby’s bottom, the real danger starts when they are thrown away into the trash can. Most of these chemicals are notorious for spreading toxicity, being carcinogenic and causing infertility when inhaled, and since they are easily released on being in direct contact with heat, diapers in the trash can near your backyard can potentially be a threat to both human and animal life.
Eco friendly diapers are primarily made from sterile materials such as bamboo and corn resin, are not infused with any harmful chemicals, and are hypoallergenic, making them safe for your baby’s tushy as well as safe when disposed of in the trash can.
Eco friendly diapers aren’t expensive anymore
Long gone are the days when eco friendly alternatives could only be affordable by the world’s 1 percent, and the same goes for eco friendly diapers. Several companies now offer biodegradable diapers at increasingly low prices. One such diaper company, called poof, is offering biodegradable, bamboo-based diapers at a shockingly low price point! (Check out the price on Amazon here).
With increasing number of manufacturers and competition, along with greater awareness among consumers, it is only a matter of time before these sustainable diapers are going to be even cheaper than your traditional diapers, thereby motivating traditional diaper companies to also move to more sustainable, greener products and practices.