Bringing Up Baby—Naturally

E: The Environmental Magazine, Sept, 1999 by Tracey C. Rembert

Diaper Dilemmas

Environmentalists have been battling for decades over which is better: cloth or disposable diapers. While cloth diapers use far more water and detergents to dean them, as well as fossil fuels during transport in diaper services, typical disposables sit for decades in landfills, are made with chlorine bleach, and consume 1,265,000 metric tons of wood pulp and 75,000 metric tons of plastic a year.

What's a parent to do? There are some options: Cloth diapers are now made with Velcro, snaps and fancy designs that eliminate much of the hassle of the bad old days. And while diaper services have been hurting in recent years, water- and energy-efficiency for home washing machines has improved. Parents can also buy disposable liners for cloth diapers, so that the messiest parts thrown away are also the thinnest. Popular cloth diaper distributors include Baby Bunz and Company, Babyworks, Biobottoms and Ecobaby. Tushies offers a disposable using natural cotton absorbers instead of chemical gels.

Lotions and Potions

Once diapers have been decided upon, consider what comes into contact with your baby's most intimate parts. Conventional creams, powders, soaps and lotions not only contain harsh detergents, synthetic chemicals and fragrances, but can also produce allergic or irritating reactions in newborn skin.

Weleda offers a gentler line of botanical baby care, featuring calendula, marigold flower, chamomile--and no synthetic ingredients or petroleum derivatives. Weleda also offers talc-free powder for diaper changes. Aubrey Organics' Natural Baby and Kids shampoo instills balm-mint, yarrow and fennel into a mild coconut base for sensitive scalps, while its body lotion uses primrose oil, organic jojoba and wheat-germ oil to prevent diaper rash.

Just remember to keep everything in moderation, and don't stress over the conventional gifts you receive, or the synthetic carpet already adorning baby's new room. It's more important to tackle the biggest threats--noxious paint, unsafe food and water, toxic chemicals and tainted air. CONTACT: AFM, (619)239-0321; Aubrey Organics, (800)AUBREY-H; Benjamin Moore, (800)826-2623; Chem-Safe, (210)657-5321; Crown City Mattress, (800)365-6563; Evenflo, (800)356-BABY; Tender Harvest (800) 4-GERBER; Glidden, (800)221-4100; Green Babies, (800)603-7508; Livos, (508)477-7955; Naturlich Natural Home, (707)824-0914; Pacific Rim, (541)342-4508; Sinan, (530)753-3104; Terra Verde, (212)925-4533; Tushies, (800)344-6379; Weleda, Inc., (800)241-1030.

TRACEY C. REMBERT is an environmental writer residing in Takoma Park, MD.