"Natural" or earth-friendly baby products.?
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I tried cloth diapers, but my son had diaper rash on top of diaper rash, even though I changed him the moment I knew he was wet. The plastic covers were the major culprit. The cloth diapers were also a major time eater. After my son had his second secondary infection requiring anti-biotics caused by rampant diaper rash in his first 3 months of life, I gave up on the cloth diapers.
Regarding the non-toxic car seats and strollers, I don't really know what you mean by that. All baby products are tested for safety, which would include toxicity. I certainly understand your environmental concerns, but shouldn't your first priority be the safety and well-being of your child?
I do cloth diapers, and I *love* them! If you don't know much about the current state of cloth, you're going to be very pleasantly surprised- cloth diapers nowadays are as easy to put on and off as a disposable, and far more leakproof. :D
I'm gonna link you right up, but the basic kinds are:
*All-In-Ones (AIOs), which are diapers that are all one piece, including the waterproof layer. PRO- easy, easy. CON- take a long time to dry.
*Pockets, which are like AIOs, except that the absorbent part can be pulled out of the diaper for quicker drying. This is probably the number one most popular cloth diaper on the market today.
*Fitteds, which are not waterproof and require a cover, but are "fitted" to your baby and require no folding or pinning (they usually snap or velcro).
*Prefolds, which are your old school diapers and require pins and covers and the whole shebang.
Here's your links- I think CDing is super easy, great on the environment, and best for my baby's bum! Good luck researching. The companies that sell diapers in these links are all companies I've bought from and had good experiences with, by the way.
Sorry, I can't help with your other questions. :(
ETA: I couldn't find anything about strollers or carseats, but you might find this link of interest:
http://www.lesstoxicguide.ca/index.asp?fetch=babycare
Can't offer any suggestions on strollers and car seats in terms of being environmentally safe, although I would recommend looking into a good sling or carrier to use instead of a stroller. Cloth is definitely more earth-friendly than plastic, especially if you find an organic cotton sling/carrier. My favorite sling is the Maya Wrap and my favorite carrier is the Baby Hawk (GREAT for big babies), but there are plenty of great companies out there to choose from. Most carriers and slings go up to at least 35 pounds, so you'd be able to use them well into toddlerhood.
The previous poster gave you a great rundown on cloth diapers, so I'll skip that and just add my own tips from experience. I'm CDing two under two right now and work in a baby store selling cloth diapers.
First and foremost, never swish your dipes in a toilet. That's one of the biggest arguments I've heard against using CDs and I've never had to do it. Yuck! Why would you? Newborn poops, especially if you're breastfeeding, are pretty neutral-smelling and wash out very easily in the washing machine, even after sitting in a diaper pail for a day or three. Once a baby starts solids, the poops get more solid and just shake off into the toilet. If they go through teething or an illness that causes messy poops, you can just use biodegradeable rice paper liners. Lift and flush, no mess, no fuss.
2. Use scent-free laundry detergent, not laundry soap, and skip the fabric softeners. All you need per load of CDs is 1/4 cap of detergent. Soap and fabric softener will build up on CDs and make them less absorbent. In this case, the simpler your laundry routine, the better. :)
3. When you first buy CDs, don't buy all one kind. Get a few different kinds and different brands and try them out. Every baby is shaped differently, and some are heavier pee-ers than others, so a certain dipe might work better for you than others. Plus, you might find you just like velcro better than snaps, or vice versa. Have fun shopping before you "settle down."
That said, here would be my recommendations for a starter diaper package:
A newborn will go through 12-14 diapers a day. Aim for a two-day supply so you don't have to do laundry every day.
Prefolds are cheap, durable, and can be used for many other things as well, such as burp cloths, changing pads, bibs, etc. The learning curve can be a little steeper as you learn the different ways to fold them, but a dozen cotton prefolds are only $25, so they're well worth the investment. Snappis are a nice replacement for pins now, too.
Kissaluvs are a great starter diaper. They're a fitted with a center snap that allows you to fold the diaper down around the cord stump while it heals.
Prefolds and Kissaluvs both take diaper covers. Skip the rubber pants and go with something cute and easy to use, like Bummis or Imse Vimse. You only need 1 cover for every 3-4 diapers -- just air dry if needed and reuse.
Kushies are a good all-in-one diaper, especially good for anyone not comfortable changing a cloth diaper (like grandma and grandpa). Goes on and off like a disposable but is waaaay cuter and you don't throw it out.
There are a lot of good pocket diapers out there. I personally like FuzziBunz, but I've also heard good things about BumGenius and Happy Heinies. You can stuff them with cotton, microfleece, or hemp doublers, or even a prefold for an overnight diaper.
Hemp is more expensive than cotton but it also absorbs 7x more liquid. If you have a heavy wetter and go with pocket diapers or prefolds, this would be a good option. But don't invest in it until you find you have a need to.
Cheers~
Wal-Mart now has organic products, including clothes for babies. :)
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