How you handle negatice comments on cloth nappies?

Jocelyn - posted on 04/02/2009

i've personally never gotten any nasty comments, usually ppl just ask a bunch of questions (which i gladly answer!)  I have recently stopped cding my oldest (stopped at around 18 months or so)  He is just too active to keep the cloth ones on anymore lol, but it's not soo bad now, he only goes thru 3 disposables a day and we've starting potty training.  But i'm preggers again and those cloth diapers are gonna be coming back out into the open for the next little one!

as for me i don't even wear disposable anything for my "lady days" :)  im a DivaCup girl lol

Elizabeth - posted on 04/01/2009

Usually even people who are turned off by cloth diapers will come around to a financial argument. We use one-size diapers that will likely fit all the way through potty learning for just $500 (we have twins, so our stash is 27 diapers)... the cost of about 5 months' worth of disposables. If we used disposables we would double our cost for city trash pickup due to the increased volume.

Obviously, the benefits of cloth are far greater than the financial aspect. I do what I can to live lightly on the earth, and avoiding disposable diapers is an easy way. The organic cotton inner of our diapers is far better for the twins' bums than plastic-y sposies. Ours have snap closures, so busy little fingers can't open them. We have diapers in seven different cute colors, too!

Jennifer - posted on 04/01/2009

Rachel - posted on 03/25/2009

I haven't come across much negativity, but some people have seemed surprised or weirded out. One thing I like to mention is that when I'm running low on diapers, it's so much easier for me to throw in a load of laundry than it is to make a trip to the store to buy more.

Arika - posted on 03/25/2009

The worst I have delt with is people saying "wow, thats disgusting! You do WHAT with the poo?!" I just ignore it because chances are people are a bit intimidated by what they arn't familiar with..especially the know it alls. From most of the people I talk to about CD's I get a "good for you!'

Emilie - posted on 03/24/2009

I try not to get pissed. My MIL refuses to use them, it's a power struggle with her though. I just remind them that I will probably get through diapering spending about $300 including wipes and everything.

Just tell them it's good for the environment, good for baby, good for your pocket, and is only a load of extra laundery every other day or so.

Patricia - posted on 03/22/2009

I don't get a lot of negative comments from people, I think more people are just shocked that I cloth diaper my twins, but I do get so sick of explaining why I feel the need to cloth diaper.  I have condensed my version to a plain and simple "I have twins. Disposables are not in my budget...too expensive."

Sierra - posted on 03/22/2009

I usually just rave about how wonderful they are! "So easy, cute and did I mention easy?! CD's are so high tech these days that everybody would use them if they knew about em. and they are just so cute!" (then i whip out my cutest dipe like HH monkey print) "boy they are not just pins and rags anymore, no sir!" people don't want to hurt your feelings when you're stoked about it. so maybe they think it's cool or maybe they think you're crazy but at least you've avoided a useless argument while still educating them. also i point out that they smell better (pee in a sposie is SO gross), leak less, and at 6 months my son has never had a diaper rash. and if i don't feel like getting into it i just say,
"Only the very best for my child thank you"

Kelly - posted on 03/17/2009

Quoting Stella:

Even worse than a skinny sposie bum is a sposie bum that has absorbed so much wee it's down to the poor childs knees. Just because it isn't leaking all over them, doesn't mean they're comfortable!

YUKKY!!! and we have all seen that one!! and what about sposies in the gutter or on the beach!!!Yukky!

Candace - posted on 03/14/2009

Quoting Sarah:

This is my favorite comment, told to be by a former professor who admired that I was cloth diapering, "Disposables are like fast food - you know its not good for you, but you eat it anyway because your lazy." How true is that??? So, just know that inside you are authentic and doing what is RIGHT for your children!

oh I LOVE that!!!!!!!!!! 

Corrie - posted on 03/14/2009

Interesting topic :). I haven't gotten any negative comments, just interested & sometimes confused looks. I don't think that people realize that CDing is so much more advanced now than it used to be. I love to CD!!

Kelly - posted on 03/12/2009

I love to talk about just how soft and cute all the diapers are, it is like accessorizing for a baby, so many colors from which to choose! Tell people "the baby is an excessive spitter so it makes sense to cloth diaper since I am already doing a ton of laundry"... most people won't ask anymore questions!

Laura - posted on 03/12/2009

Quoting Anastasia:

 One of the ones I found funny was from a coworker who said 'ugh, I don't want your washing machine'

Thats funny.  The first time I told my husband I wanted to CD this one he said that all he could picture is the inside of our washer covered in s**t.  And that his clothes were washed in there.  Then he said he forbid me to do it.  LOL  Well, needless to say, he came around...reluctantly, but he came.  Forbid me, HA!

Jennifer - posted on 03/12/2009

Quoting Stella:

Even worse than a skinny sposie bum is a sposie bum that has absorbed so much wee it's down to the poor childs knees. Just because it isn't leaking all over them, doesn't mean they're comfortable!

That is fantastic!

Barbara - posted on 03/12/2009

Quoting Rebecca:

i like some of the comments that ppl use when asked about CD'ing. As to the cloth pads, my mom says that is unsanitary and gross. i have yet to find something that works liek a tampon for me.
my sole purpose for useing the diapers to begin with was to saty home with my kids i had to save money some how. After doing some reading that the heat with sposies can make a male sterile that made me even more determined to use them with my son and i often wondered if the silicon gel would do harm some how.
my family (blood and ILs) dislike tha fact that i use cloth diapers and pads. i even use cloth wipes with my son. the only ones that supports me are my dad and DH.

You should look for a product called "The Keeper."  We sell it in the co-op where I work, and most of my friends use it.  It is a little cup that is inserted like a tampon that you empty and rinse.  I haven't tried it yet but everyone I've talked to who has really likes it.

Anastasia - posted on 03/11/2009

I count my blessings - I have most of my family's support. The most negative comments I get are from people who are just uninformed, and they won't listen to any arguments anyway, so why bother? One of the ones I found funny was from a coworker who said 'ugh, I don't want your washing machine' I responded with 1) don't worry, I love my new washer, and 2) if it didn't get things clean, it wouldn't be a very good washing machine, now would it? Honestly it's like beating your head against a wall sometimes, so I just try to let it go. Most of the people I know are unfortunately very McDonald's mentality. (I do like that analogy)

Joanne - posted on 03/11/2009

ive always supported my daughters using cloth diapers, and anyone else who uses them. \One of the things i love most about them is that you can make them as thick or as light as necessary by inserting a extra pad or two. i ahve never understood people who push the standard, diapers. silicone is dangerous and unhealthy, they are bad for our enviroment our families and yes they are expensive. You can purchase cloth diapers in various styles, colors and they are extremely easy to make and care for. cloth cleaning pads are also extremely health for the kids and easy to care for. Organic materials are soft and easy to work with and if you have ever noticed a child raised in cloth diapers rather than disposal, the child in the cloth diapers seem to be alot happier and less 'colicky'.

Lori - posted on 03/11/2009

I haven't come across negativity in the people I know, only in things people have said online. But I've read an article about that one study that claims CDing is worse for the environment, and the arguments seemed incredibly flawed and biased. For one thing, it really only talked about it in relation to the "carbon footprint", as if that is the only way to judge something's environmental effects, without factoring in things like pollution from human feces in landfills, overfilling of landfills with literally millions of diapers every year. Plus it didn't take into account the fact that most CDs are going to be used on more than one child, often passed along until being downgraded to "rags" for further reuse. Then there's the option of hemp diapers, or organic cotton, to avoid the extra chemicals/pesticides for growing cotton.

For us, we do a weekly diaper service, which we love, and due to the their washing efficiency, it only comes to about 1 extra toilet flush per child per day. They even use delivery trucks that run on natural gas. Only thing is you don't save as much money that way. But all other arguments aside, cloth has way outperformed disposables for us, so that I avoid using a sposies unless I have no choice.

Rebecca - posted on 03/11/2009

i like some of the comments that ppl use when asked about CD'ing. As to the cloth pads, my mom says that is unsanitary and gross. i have yet to find something that works liek a tampon for me.

my sole purpose for useing the diapers to begin with was to saty home with my kids i had to save money some how. After doing some reading that the heat with sposies can make a male sterile that made me even more determined to use them with my son and i often wondered if the silicon gel would do harm some how.

my family (blood and ILs) dislike tha fact that i use cloth diapers and pads. i even use cloth wipes with my son. the only ones that supports me are my dad and DH.

Kelly - posted on 03/11/2009

I haven't actually found my way to cloth wipes just yettttt however, I am home a lot so we just rince our Son's bottom in running water (which is also better and saves on using wipes). I still manage to only spend $3 which lasts me about a month because i only use them when I'm out, which is hardly and when I do I'm only out for a few hours.

I find that almost everyone that has given nasty comments to me are people who haven't even opened up internet explorer and googled some information and are going by what they think and what others have told them. THAT right there is fustrating.

Joanne - I'm so sorry to hear about your cousins daughter...it makes me more determine to cloth nappy all my future children.

Joanne - posted on 03/11/2009

i am a 47 yr old grandma, who also cloth diapered my two daughters and now my daughters are doing the same. I received all forms of , good and bad when i decided to cloth diaper my kid. my daughter receives all kinds of comments as well in regards to the same issue. Now a days there are even more reasons to cloth diaper. The silicone gel in disposable diapers is toxic and can cause infertility in females. The toxins can also cause skin infections, bladder infections, as well as other nasty little issues. So next time someone approaches you, say. YOU WANT YOUR CHILDREN TO GROW UP HAPPY AND HEALTHY, and you do not want your babies subjected to toxins that can not only cause infertility, but cancers. My cousins wee baby girl, was diagnosed with cancer recently, which was traced back to the silicone in disposable diapers that would break open and leak. i think that is enough of a reason to cloth in itself.

Elizabeth - posted on 03/11/2009

When I've gotten negative comments I think they've been because it makes other mothers feel judged not to be using CD. Like they think that I think I'm so much better or more environmental or more health conscious or whatever than they are. So I just try to emphasize the fact that we think they are cute, and they are easy for us. Older women remember the "bad old days" and I don't wonder that they are surprised that anyone would willingly CD like they had to! No way would I use pins and rubber pants, either! ;-)

Rosa - posted on 03/11/2009

So I am not the only one using cloth wipes!!

My cloth wipes are being used on my second child now and they really work SO much more better than the wipes full of chemicals. My babies rarely got rashes because every time I wiped it was like a mini-bath for their tush.

Gillian - posted on 03/11/2009

My parents in law and siter in law won't do cloth nappies so she just has disposables when she's there and let them fill up their bin with rubbish.  You can buy biodegradble disoposable nappies which isn't as bad, I just make sure she wears cloth at home

Tricia - posted on 03/11/2009

I usually laugh and say, "well I'll put up with a lot to save over a thousand bucks!"  :-)  People can argue environmental impact because nobody really knows precisely, but nobody can argue that cloth is waaaaaay cheaper.

Elly - posted on 03/11/2009

That is funny. Why wouldn't someone go for the less expensive option?! I like that I use cloth wipes, so all my friends go on about how much they spend on wipes per month and I spend nothing. Well, I do have a pack in my diaper bag but they last me months! In fact, when people come over and want to use my wipes, i often have to hunt them down...

Laura - posted on 03/11/2009

I have 9 weeks to go before I enter the world of CD'ing. My sister has already told me that anyone she mentioned that I was Cd'ing to first asked "What is she that broke?" I find it funny that $ issues is the first assumption. My view is if it is cheaper and benefits the environment, whats the problem? What a little extra laundry?



I just wished I knew more about it with our first.

Rhonda - posted on 03/10/2009

Most people are surprised that I use cloth "in this day and age". I just explain to them that it really isn't any harder than using disposables and is way more economical.

I also tell people, "I know what my garage smells like just from emptying the cat's litter box, I don't want to imagine what it would smell like when you add a week's worth of baby poop on top of that!"

Humor is always the best way to go I think, and besides, who else should care about how you raise your own children - you are doing what is best for them!

Stella - posted on 03/09/2009

Even worse than a skinny sposie bum is a sposie bum that has absorbed so much wee it's down to the poor childs knees. Just because it isn't leaking all over them, doesn't mean they're comfortable!

Elly - posted on 03/09/2009

Its like we have been so overcome with the 'convenience' of so many things, we can't go to a little bit more effort for a good cause. Although I love CDs, just the cute fluffy bum thing. People are always saying he has a big butt, but I think the skinny sposie butts are much less attractive!

My sister used the mooncup and loved it, but it doesn't appeal to me. Great concept, tho.

Stella - posted on 03/09/2009

We haven't had many comments (mainly if people have been near me when I've been loading them into the washing machine, then they comment on the smell- to which I point out that it's only until they washed and the pails keep any smell in until I do a wash (I dry pail the wet ones and use diluted vinegar and tea tree oil soak for soiled ones)). As to the environmental points- our washing machine is only a couple of years old and one of these intellegent efficient ones. But apart from the landfill aspect of disposables, there's the manufacturing the diapers themselves, manufacturing the materials to make them, etc and so forth. All of my cloth diapers have been given to me by people who had finished with them from their children or I've bought them second hand off ebay. So essentially, you could say one childs CD's have done at least three children (I'm currently re-using my CD's on my second child), how many disposables would three children get through?!
Otherwise people mainly screw their noses up and get all squeamish on me about putting poo-ey nappies into something that washes your clothes. For goodness sake, how did we get so sanitised and wimpy about our bodily functions. And you can wear gloves to put them in!
I do seem to be lucky on one point, both MIL and my own mum love how easy CDing is now compared to when they had to do it. One of their favourite gadgets is the nappy nippa (and my husband's too).
Just to emphasize Elly's point about using cloth pads for ourselves, I looked into it, but actually found something even better. The mooncup is effectively a tampon, but it's just one product and can replace 5 years worth of tampons. How efficient is that?!
Sorry to rant at the converted, like you all it just frustrates me that people can't be bothered to make the effort.

Kerry - posted on 03/09/2009

What is it with mother-in-laws? Mine wanted to buy a large gift for our baby, so we requested cloth diapers. Every chance she got she asked us if we were really sure, and reminded us we could return them until the baby was born. We had to constantly remind her we were committed to using them. Now, when we travel we use disposables and she makes comments like, "Thank God for disposable diapers!" knowing full well we cloth diaper at home. She just refuses to believe that we love cloth diapering, and that our daughter prefers it too.

Elly - posted on 03/09/2009

I have read a few reports about the environmental impact of sposies versus CDs, but it is difficult to tell how objective they are. One big environmental impact you can make is by buying organic cotton, since a huge amount of the pesticide use globally is to grow cotton. The thing that I find most annoying is that people who get really anxious about BPA, for example, have no qualms about tossing poopy diapers into the trash to go into landfill and then runoff into clean water, which will effect everyone who drinks that water. People mostly ask me about how much work it is and I say not much just a couple of extra loads of laundry per week. It isn't like we still have to pound our laundry on the rocks in the river,people!

My MIL was very dismissive (to my husband) about us cloth diapering, saying that it isn't environmentally friendly. I think it probably is marginally better to CD. When you think about the added impact with sposies, like car journeys to buy them, as well as their manufacturing and disposal it sounds less 'cost effective'. And honestly, for any woman who has worn pads each month, I can't believe you'd want your baby to have that feeling every single day... (that's why I now use cloth pads for myself).

Jessica - posted on 03/09/2009

I have gotten a few negative cloth diaper comments.  I just explain that my husband and I like using cloth much better than disposibles (our older child was in sposies).  Our house smells better (no dirty diapers in the trash) and it's better for our child's sensitive skin.

I learned to keep the environmental aspect out of it b/c I found that with most anti-CDers, it sparks a debate about if it really is more environment friendly considering the extra water we are using to wash.  I still believe CDing is better for the environment, but I don't want to debate about it.

Allie - posted on 03/09/2009

i haven't had many negitive coments. my MIL paid for the cloth diapers for us. and my mum says her cloth nappies were easier to clean after poos. but i didn't want pins or stuff, so i have velcro and am loving them. oh and we never run out of diapers we have 24

Kelly - posted on 03/08/2009

Thank You for all your responses, they were much appreciated. I will and have used the fastfood metephor and I will most likely start to just smile and answer their question with a question too. 

Anna - posted on 03/08/2009

I don't know the answer, but I'm glad I'm not the only one. My in-laws just spent three weeks with us and every time my MIL changed a diaper, she put him in a disposable. She even bought me an extra large pack of disposables since I was "running out"! We showed her how to use the cloth and my husband raved about how easy it was, but she continued. Another experience was that my husband mentioned to a few friends that we were CDing and his friends tried to convince him that it was worse for the environment to CD, claiming water usage, electrical usage in washing, etc. We line dry, so that shut them up quickly.

Kelly - posted on 03/08/2009

I've never had anyone be mean. I find it funny when I answer their question, "Yes we cloth diaper." and they feel like they have to defend disposables to me. I'm all grins on the inside. I love the McDonalds/fastfood metaphor! I'll have to remember that one. I would suggest turning the tables on those who question you and answer them with a question, "Why? Are you interested in learning more about it?" Then you're done if they aren't interested (you've given them nothing to do but answer yes or no) and you don't have to explain yourself.

Vilate - posted on 03/08/2009

It is funny the way the world works, do the right thing and you get persucuted huh?  I just tell my fiends you caould save more moneya dn the planet, but if you choose not to that is your choice.  I have never had anyone give me a hard time about it, just tell me they would never do it.  So, Kudos to us for standing up and doing somthing we know needs to be done.  We did the right thing!

Allison - posted on 03/08/2009

I don't tend to get negative comments from people. I don't know why...I've been using cloth for 2 years straight and used them on my older child for 18 months.

I completely understand how you could get worked up about it, though :-) I typically ask if the 'sposie users has ever read the instructions on their diaper pack - it *does* say you have to dump poop into the toilet, after all! Not any easier than a cloth diaper. Plus the cloth are cuter. I also say "It works for us" and leave it at that. I try to educate others about it - the change their perceptions, but not necessarily get them to switch. Most of them just think it's gross, honestly I don't think it's any worse than the disposables, plus at least my kids don't have the chemicals that are in the 'sposies next to their skin.

Try to just brush them off - it's not really worth getting so upset. Remind yourself that you've made a good decision and try to keep that in mind you so can relax a bit :-)

Sarah - posted on 03/08/2009

This is my favorite comment, told to be by a former professor who admired that I was cloth diapering, "Disposables are like fast food - you know its not good for you, but you eat it anyway because your lazy." How true is that??? So, just know that inside you are authentic and doing what is RIGHT for your children!

The other comment I saw is, "My mom used cloth and therefore, I do too."

Kimberly - posted on 03/08/2009

Oh, I'm also learning to just grin and bear it. I have friends who mockingly say things to me like, "You won't be able to keep that up when you have more kids" or my mother in law who says my son "isn't comfortable" because of that "bulky" (we dont' use bulky diapers) diaper between his legs. It's funny, because when she had kids, EVERYONE used cloth, including her!!!!! I just tell them I am doing what's best for my son and the earth and that since I'm the one doing the laundry and changing most of the diapers I don't see why they need to have an opinion. I'm like you, though, I get all mad and fed up with it. It seems to me that the people using plastic diapers that take 500 years to even begin degrading should be the ones defending themselves, not us! :D

Noel - posted on 03/08/2009

my MIL flat out refuses to use them if the baby is at her house so my husband told her I guess they wont be coming over till they are out of diapers... I just tell them thanks for ruining the planet.. and move on... some people are just like that and it sucks... I had a good friend who made up every excuse in the book because she wanted to save money but she claimed there was no way to cloth diaper in the area she lived...