Cloth diapers today have little to do with the "rags" that put many of us. They have won in comfort, in aesthetics, in efficiency. But, if we talk about respect for the environment, Are cloth diapers greener than disposable ones?
There are studies that indicate that no, that the ecological cost would be similar in some and other diapers. Diapers a year, cut trees, washing machines, biodegradation time ... are some of the terms used to differentiate one and the other diapers, and I assure you that with very different figures.
Among the users of cloth diapers (or rather between their parents) they usually praise the economic benefits of these diapers. But taking account, you realize that, in the same way that there are disposable diapers of very different prices according to the brands, the cloth diapers also have variable prices according to the system, quality, accessories ...
Therefore, depending on the diapers you perform the calculations (along with other variables such as the age of the baby), it may not come out as cheap to use washable diapers nor as expensive to use disposables. What it seems is that the initial outlay will be stronger in the case of cloth diapers.
Regarding the dermatological benefits of cloth diapers, because in principle for sensitive skin they will be much less allergenic than conventional diapers that use more chemicals in their production. On the opposite side, we could say that these, disposables, absorb much more, so that the contact of the feces with the baby's skin is less, which results in the health of your skin. Nor should we forget that leaks tend to be less frequent in conventional diapers.
But we want to focus now on one of the issues most claimed by washable diapers, which are often called ecological diapers, that is, environmentally friendly: environmental benefits of cloth diapers.
Diapers and environment
On the other hand, there are studies that indicate that the ecological cost of cloth diapers are similar. In the United Kingdom, an official investigation was conducted that lasted three years, with public funds, to compare cloth diapers and disposable diapers, concluding that the ecological effects of cloth diapers and disposables were the same.
Government health officials said the greenhouse gases generated by disposables were comparable to the electricity needed to clean and dry the seconds. That is why diaper recycling was proposed as a greener alternative.
Other studies have confirmed that the use of disposable diapers as a substrate for certain crops is efficient (diapers were used exclusively with liquid waste), another way to minimize the environmental impact of conventional diapers.
Without knowing about ozone emissions, in principle and from what I have been able to read the washable diapers force to put many more washing machines and at a higher temperature (they do not recommend washing in cold), with the extra expense that that entails in energy and water. Prewashing or extra rinses (by hand or by machine) are widely used to eliminate feces, so the greater expense (I repeat, in water and energy) is evident.
On the other hand, if we talk about that in Mexico City, for example, there are about 570 tons of waste produced by disposable diapers a day, it is undeniable that this fact affects the problem of environmental pollution.
What diapers take to degrade
Then we have the question of whether it costs more to make cloth or cellulose diapers, the energy spent by manufacturers, the trees that are needed, the time it takes for the diaper to biodegrade ... but in this there are no agreements as we have indicated in the introduction.
For example, regarding biodegradation of disposable diapers, there are figures so different that they speak between 500 years (how is it possible to know this if only a few decades ago there are diapers with the current characteristics?) to 15 years, not much more than a cloth diaper. Cellulosic materials are potentially degradable, although recalcitrant, that is, in natural environments, their destruction requires "tens or even hundreds of years" according to researchers seeking diaper recycling.
In any case, whether decades or hundreds of years, it is always preferable that the diaper is not wrapped in a plastic bag, because this prevents it from aerating and that aerobic bacteria that facilitate biodegradability access inside.
The degradation time of cotton cloth diapers (excluding plastics or metals that may be in some models) is less than 12 months. And, above all, the great advantage in this aspect exceeds the temporal and focuses on the quantity: there are much less washable diapers in the environment to biodegrade.
Anyway, in some ways it is not clear that cloth diapers are more ecological than disposable ones, very few controlled studies talk about the ecological cost of each other (other things are the calculations that each one can do “in the eye of a good cubero”).
The ecological impacts of some may be more damaging than those of the other depending on what areas. To a large extent, it cannot be compared in an equivalent manner or determine definitive conclusions in this regard. The clearest thing, in my opinion: that production costs in every way are more amortized in washable diapers, as they are not single-use. And that the costs in washing are superior in those of cloth.
For all this I consider that in this Disposable washable-disposable diapers, rather than for the environment, we must opt for what works best for our baby or for what we are willing to pay, which as we see does not have a universal response either. A personal and informed decision, after all, which obviously does not usually set aside other variables, such as comfort.
