Cloth or Disposable am I missing something?

Question

Leaks...
Disposable, really? Certainly there are materials that can be swen into the proper shape to meet or exceed paper and be resuable. The trick is finding the right one. I judge equal; 1 point each.
Convienence...
Disposable wins; reasons are obvious. 1 point to disposable.
Health...
I'm no expert; but current data suggests no difference. 1 point each.
Cost...
I'm not considering the pre-folds but conservatively, even laundering myself, I still expect to save money; then donate to charity when done so that's a tax break. So I think 1 point to cloth.
Environment...
This is really most important to me. It would seem the answer would be obvious but I can't seem to find a truely comprehensive up to date study on the eco footprint of each. Does the laundering of cloth out weigh the waste of disposable? Please convince me either way?

Obviously is Baby has a problem with one over the other no debate is needed.

Answer 1

Leaks: once you figure out what you're doing, cloth diapers don't leak unless you leave them on too long.
Convenience: it's way easier to throw in a load of laundry than run to the Wal-Mart for a box of White Clouds. There's a hidden cost here, too. Who can go to Wal-Mart without finding other things to buy?
Health: our disposable diapers are so toxic that they would be illegal in other countries. They are very airtight, and that causes diaper rash.
Cost: cloth diapers are as expensive as you want them to be. Don't forget to factor in the hidden cost of disposables (landfill and hauling).
Environment: If you wash your diapers in nothing but a half-dose of detergent, some baking soda and vinegar, you're saving about a ton of solid waste from the landfill without adding bleach into our water. Disposable diapers are NOT biodegradable, and the pee and poop contained in them leaches into our water supply because landfills are not equipped to handle human waste. When we use cloth diapers, waste goes into the sewer for treatment. The studies commissioned by Proctor and Gamble (Pamper and Luvs) are obviously flawed, and the OSU study took into account the washing practices from two generations ago. It's no longer a debate. Cloth is better for the Earth.

Answer 2

Ick! Why on earth would you want to keep that mess around? My kids get disposable allllllllllllllllllll the way!!!! Sorry but after I take the diaper off I just don't want anything else to do with it other than throwing it away. And think about when you go out someplace with the baby and they need a change. You have to walk around with that stinky stinky thing in the diaper bag the rest of the time (I supose if you dispise crowds this would be a good deturant). And god forbid you forget to bring a waterproof bag along! Sorry Mr. Environment but my kids are and always will be disposable diaper babies! I'll recycle, I won't litter, I'll use energy efficiant and low emmisions items, I'll even hug a tree but I absolutely will not use a cloth diaper! Yuck!

Answer 3

As far as I'm concerned cloth diapers win over disposable diapers 10 fold.

Answer 4

I had four kids and used cloth with all of them. It is only a couple of loads of laundry per week. I used a combination of flat and prefold diapers. I usually used one prefold with two flat diapers and plastic pants on top of that. Sometimes I used diaper liners, which are disposable and cost a fraction of a cent apiece. I think my kids had less diaper rash with cloth diapers. You will need at least 4 dozen.

Answer 5

Six dozen one, half dozen the other. I vote for convenience, more time to spend with the baby, less time doing laundry.

Answer 6

I've only used disposable, but if you want to use cloth, more power to you.

Answer 7

i used Luvs (which are disposable) because they have a very good leakage protection and they are less expensive than pampers or huggies