This week Ireland’s Classic Hits Radio met with Kate Doyle, who is chair of Cloth Nappy Library Ireland, and also the founder of The Nappy Market, to discuss the re-emergence of cloth nappies.
There are many reasons why people choose cloth nappies:
- From birth to potty training most babies will use on average 3,800 disposable nappies.. which all end up either incinerated or in landfill, however in comparison just 24 real nappies are needed to get your baby from newborn to potty training, and can then be reused on subsequent siblings or sold on when you’re done with the diapers!
- Many families opt for cloth for financial reasons. Disposable nappies can cost up to €1,000 per child from birth to potty training. Using cloth works out a lot less over time and savings are multiplied when nappies are used on another baby or if you buy preloved and thats before you take bin charges into consideration!
- Cloth nappies will not fill up your bins. It’s also worth noting that “poop-splosions” that can be common in disposable nappies are rare in cloth nappies: elastic at the back of a nappy is essential for reliable poo containment!
- Not many families switch to cloth for the sake of cuteness but it’s a nice little perk when you can save money, save the planet, have an effective, comfortable nappy and also win hands down in any cuteness competitions!
- The environment is a huge factor for many families. It’s hard to believe that 5 nappies a day 365 day a year for 2.5 years tots up to almost 4500 nappies. Disposable nappies are estimated to take 200-500 years to decompose in landfills: using even just one cloth nappy a day reduces that number by almost 1,000. Together we can make a huge difference!
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