A Parents’ Guide to Choosing 'em, Using 'em & Washing 'em!

Are You Considering Using Cloth Nappies?
There are several reasons for choosing cloth nappies instead of disposables:

Better for baby - Parents are increasingly concerned about the unregulated chemicals used in disposables. Most disposable nappies contain artificial chemical absorbents such as sodium polyacrylate. These chemical granules are used to increase absorbency and form a gel that can end up on your baby as well as in the soil. Independent US research has also shown that the chemicals in non-cloth disposables can trigger asthma like reactions in normal laboratory animals (US Archives of Environemntal Health), October 1999).

Better for the environment - Waste - Nearly 3 billion nappies are thrown away in the UK every year and the vast majority of these (90%) end up in landfill. Around 8 million nappies are thrown away every day in the UK! We do not know how long it takes for the plastics in disposable nappies to decompose but it could take hundreds of years. If one parent, changing 4 times a day and once at night for 3 years, stopped using disposable nappies, it would save 5 nappies per day, 35 per week, 1,820 per year, 5,460 in all being put in landfill. No wonder more and more parents are choosing cloth nappies!

Better for your pocket - Average spend on disposable nappies: £700 and that is for 2.5 years This does not take into consideration that a lot of children stay in nappies for a lot longer, some, at night, ‘til 7/8 years old.

But the thing most parents want to know is...... How much work is involved? Not as much as you might think and mothers who use washable nappies find it extremely satisfying and (dare I say it) - enjoyable (yes, really!).

Click the links below for more

Types and choices of nappies

How many will I need?

Wraps and liners

Washing and drying nappies

Washable wipes and nappy rash

Video Link Help on You Tube

Prefold Nappies
Folding prefolds (girl & boy) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWbxEk-sMU4
Bikini Twist - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DatYe9jLqfI
 
Terry Nappies
Triangle fold – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiG8uwNnjWk&feature=related
Kite fold – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4xw0QVyubc&feature=related
Newborn fold - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIqlaU23-SY&feature=related
 
Muslins
Pinless for a NB - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIIUg9ic7bA&feature=related
 
All in Ones
What are they? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYXz9XL53U8
 
Imse Vimse Organic Nappy
How to use them - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xk6JO4M-iDI
 
One Size Nappy
Small fitting –http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JHnyuUp3dE&feature=user
 
Pocket Nappies
What are they? -1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYXz9XL53U8 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYXz9XL53U8
Fuzzibunz v Bumgenius - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oz6wujy0Jwg