Why use cloth nappies?

1. Cloth Nappies are the Healthy Choice

As previously mentioned neither nappy type has the edge over nappy rash, as long as the baby is changed as required.

A much more potentially serious problem associated with disposable nappies is the ease of disease transmission via faeces left on the nappy and then disposed of in regular household waste.  More than 100 enteric viruses are excreted in human faeces, including hepatitis and polio (if the live vaccine is used for immunisation) Viruses can live for months creating risks to both sanitation workers and contamination of ground water in landfills.

Research into the long term health impacts of different nappy types is in its infancy.  Areas of concern include the absorbent gels in disposables, raised scrotal temperatures, the contamination of plastics with TBT (tributyl tin), chlorine bleaching of the wood pulp used in nappies and possible respiratory implications. The super absorbent get contained in most disposable nappies is supposed to be non toxic and has been approved by the American Food and Drug Administration.  However there is a distinct lack of research into the effects of extreme dryness on babies' thin skin and genitalia.

The super-absorbent gel can include sodium polyacrylate crystals which forms a gel when in contact with urine.  There are particular concerns about these super-absorbent chemicals entering the body via broken skin especially as sodium polyacrylate and other chemicals designed to increase absorbency have had to be removed from tampons as they were associated with the development of Toxic Shock Syndrome

Recent research has also suggested that disposable nappies keep babies' testicles at higher than normal temperatures.  This has raised concern over whether this could pose a risk to their future fertility.

TBT or tributyl tin is a very toxic chemical, it can contaminate certain types of plastic during manufacture.  Recently commissioned research has shown significant levels of TBT in many brands of disposable nappy, babies may be in contact with up to 3.6 times the World Health Organisation's estimated tolerable daily intake.  TBT is a recognised environmental pollutant, it is used as ship paint.  It is known to disrupt the immune and hormonal systems of marine shellfish and there are international plans to phase out its use.

Chlorine bleaching is used much less than previously in the bleaching of wood pulp for white paper products.  Chlorine bleaching creates toxic dioxins, dioxins are considered to be extremely toxic, so much so that there is debate over whether safe levels actually exist.  The issue when it comes to nappies is that the manufactures are not required to print the nappy materials or processing details on their packaging.

An independent study done in 1999 has shown that the airborne emissions of some disposable nappies can produce acute respiratory toxicity, including asthma like reactions, in normal laboratory mice.  The researchers suggest that further study is required into a possible link between disposable nappies and the increasing prevalence of childhood asthma.

2. The Easy Option Our patented design means no folding, no searching for liners or padding – everything is attached. Nappies go straight from the line to baby’s bottom. Mandy Mac nappies will always give superior leak protection to a single use nappy. We use the best quality swimwear elastic available – this is always going to be better than elastic that is designed to be thrown out after a couple of hours. Our MacTropics even contain replacealbe elastic - simply unbutton it and put in the new elastic. By using better quality elastic you are less likely to experience poo explosions which means less leaks and less washing of baby's clothing (or the carseat). Less mess means more time with baby. It is estimated that tipping nappies into the washing machine, pressing some buttons, hanging them on the line then bringing them back inside takes seven minutes - yes only seven minutes every second day! 3. Financially Responsible. Mandy Mac nappies will save you thousands of dollars compared to using single-use nappies. Using disposable nappies and wipes from birth to toilet training can cost the entire amount of your Baby Bonus. Using even the cheapest disposable nappies and wipes can cost nearly $3000 over the two and a half years your baby will be in nappies. If your Baby Bonus is disappearing into the rubbish bin, then it is time to act. An up-front investment of several hundred dollars will save you that many times over. The savings are even greater if you intend to have more than one child because the only extra costs will be the washing costs. The above graph shows the cost of using the cheapest disposables and wipes versus Mandy Mac cloth nappies. Based on six nappy changes over a three year period (you will actually need more changes on a newborn baby). With the Mandy Mac cloth nappy option you don't need to buy nappies on subsequent children. 4. Environmentally Friendly By choosing re-usable nappies you are helping to contribute towards a sustainable future. Eight hundred million, yes that's right, eight hundred million disposable nappies are thrown away every single year in Australia. They will still be there in 500 years. If you are concerned about greenhouse gases and global warming, the choice of nappy is obvious. Laundering a nappy - ie flushing solids, pre-rinsing, and washing, uses two litres less water than is needed to manufacture a disposable. Using Mandy Mac nappies will mean less water is used from Australia's reserves. Cloth is the choice for the water-conscious parent. You can be part of the solution! 5. Against Animal Testing Unlike disposable nappy manufacturers, Mandy Mac nappies never have and never will be involved in animal testing. We know our products are safe. In fact we believe that if it needs to be tested on animals to verify its safety/lack of then it probably shouldn’t be used on a newborn baby. For more information - please read the article on cloth nappies and disposable nappies published by the Royal Women's Hospital. It is somewhat dated, but still very informative.