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The Environmental Factor:
Each baby uses approximately 5,480 nappies from birth to being fully potty trained. When you consider that disposable nappies are not recyclable therefore they will end up in a landfill site coupled with the fact that it is still unknown how long the plastic part of the nappy takes to breakdown (estimates range up to 500 years), the environmental impact of disposable nappies is enormous.
2-3% of our household waste is estimated to be disposable nappies that equates to approximately 400,000 tonnes of waste each year. (Environment Agency 2005) or 80000 nappies a day (Women’s Environmental Network 2006). Landfill space is running out. In addition, the European Landfill Directive and national government policies are driving local authorities to reduce the amount of municipal waste sent to landfill (Rethinking Rubbish in London 2003)). The seriousness of nappy waste has been recognized by the World Health Organization who have called for an end to ‘the inclusion of urine and faecal matter in landfill sites’.
The local authorities are struggling to stop waste amounts increasing, and so pressure is increased to turn to alternatives such as incineration (The Environment Agency 2005). Incineration is not a trouble free solution (Greenpeace 2003) and emissions from incinerators cause controversy wherever they are sited.
Added to this the production of disposables:
• Uses 8 times more non-regenerable materials
• Uses 90 times more renewable resources
• Produces 60 times more solid waste
• Requires 4 times the land for growing the natural materials used in nappy production
• Takes a cupful of crude oil to produce the plastic for just one disposable nappy
• Use 4.5 trees per baby – that’s 7 million trees each year just to produce the wood pulp for disposable nappies in the UK
The above is not even taking into consideration the environmental cost of distributing disposable nappies to retailers and transporting them to your home.
Health Issues:
A study undertaken at Kiel University in Germany (2000) looked at some of the effects of using different types of nappies on the temperature of the scrotum in baby boys. It is well recognized that the sperm count of the average European man has dropped since the 1980s, by as much as 25 per cent. This may be contributing to the increase in infertility problems. But no one knows why sperm counts have fallen. It is also known that sperm production is sensitive to heat, and that factors that increase the temperature around the testes, such as fever, very hot environments, or simply tight underwear which holds the testes close to the body, can reduce sperm count. Ideal conditions for sperm production in the testes require a slightly lower temperature than normal body temperature. This study looked at baby boys wearing either reusable cotton nappies or plastic-lined disposables. It found that when disposables were worn, the scrotal temperature was consistently and significantly higher, by as much as 1°C (33.8°F) above normal body temperature, and up to 5°C higher than the babies wearing cloth nappies. The highest temperatures were found in the youngest babies (including some premature ones). The concern is that disposable nappies may, therefore, lead to prolonged increases in scrotal temperatures during childhood, which may have important implications for fertility later in life.
Many people associate cloth nappy use with terrible nappy rash and discomfort for babies. However research in the U.K. by Goulding (1997) has found that there is no significant difference in the rates of nappy rash between babies wearing disposables and babies wearing cloth nappies. The most important factor in avoiding nappy rash is changing nappies promptly when soiled
A study conducted by Greenpeace in May 2000 found that some brands of disposable nappy contained traces of Tributyl Tin. 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 Organization’s estimated tolerable daily intake. TBT is a recognized 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.
An issue that we can all relate to is the 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 immunization) Viruses can live for months creating risks to both sanitation workers and contamination of ground water in landfills (Primomo 1990).
And Then There is Cost:
The cost of nappies is an important consideration for many new parents! We estimate that it costs parents about £1000 to use disposable nappies for each child. It is estimated that cotton nappies cost between £70 to £150 (depending on which brand is used) and that includes the nappies and waterproofs for the whole of your babys nappy wearing life. Even taking into account the cost of home laundering of the nappies, there are still huge savings to be made (Midwivesonline 2006). Remember, the initial cost of cloth nappies is higher for your first child and they become even more of a money saver when used for subsequent children! To make it even cheaper check out your local council, many offer incentives, such as money off vouchers, to buy cloth nappies.
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