9 Ways to Green Baby Care
Reusable bags, breastfeeding and more
-
Your Boobs Can Help Save the Planet
Breastfeeding helps new moms burn calories, it helps babies stay healthy, and now it’s considered “green.” When you make use of your breast milk, you are saving the resources that are spent manufacturing formula and the containers it comes in, as well as the energy and water that go into cleaning bottles and rubber nipples. Read about other resources breastfeeding conserves
-
Become a Mom of the Cloth
Many moms still use disposable diapers despite their drawbacks (bad for the environment, contain traces of a carcinogens, high cost, etc.) — either because they’re not convinced cloth diapers are that much more green in the long run or because disposables seem more convenient. What many moms don’t know is that the cloth diaper has been updated to be more accommodating to the working parent. While cloth diapers require more work than disposable, the benefits may be worth it.
Read about other environmental costs of disposable diapers -
Embrace Earth-Friendly Snacking
Every breastfeeding mom — every mom, in fact — needs the occasional snack on the go, but constantly buying and using those plastic baggies is a nightmare for the environment. Fabric snack bags are a great eco-friendly alternative. Stock up on a few, throw them in the washing machine when they start to look gross inside, and never worry about running out.
See cute options for reusable snack bags -
Channel Your Inner New Yorker
Green is the new black in NYC, but really, New York parents have always practiced earth-friendly living on a daily basis — many without even realizing it. Mimic the inhabitants of the concrete jungle by utilizing public transportation (strollers are collapsible and think of the gas money you’d save!) and practicing minimalism (how do you think New Yorkers thrive in 300-square feet apartments, especially those with babies?).
Read more ways to live an urban-e-ly green lifestyle -
Pause Before You Purchase
Spring cleaning is a great exercise, especially when you have a new baby in your life. There’s no better time to reconsider what you use and shed what you don’t. If only that impulse to pare down lasted all year! Sooner or later, though, you begin to bring more “stuff” into your home. Give serious thought to things you want to buy for your child. Is it something he or she really needs? Will your child still be using it in a year? Get back to the basics and limit the amount of junk you allow to accumulate in
your home.
Hear from a mom who thinks kids only need a few toys each -
Plastic Is Still Problematic
First, we had to deal with the fact that some plastics contain BPA. Now it turns out that BPA-free plastics can still be harmful to our children and us. Why go through the trouble of finding the “right” kind of plastic? Replace plastic bottles with glass, plastic toys with felt, and plastic storage bins with wooden ones. You’ll sleep soundly knowing that toxins aren’t getting anywhere near your little one.
Read one mom’s thoughts on all of the plastic in her house -
Clean Green
We all want to keep our homes clean, but some of the conventional cleaning fluids on supermarket shelves are seriously bad for the environment. Instead buy all-natural cleaning solutions — contrary to popular belief, many cost no more than the chemical-filled variety. Or use basic household items like baking soda and vinegar to keep your surfaces, floors, and pretty much anything else spick and span.
Check out the best all-natural cleaning products and how to use them -
Make Sun Safety Earth Safe
It’s essential to protect your baby’s delicate skin from UV rays, but many sunscreens that are gentle enough for your little one aren’t so gentle on the environment; they’re often produced from chemicals harmful to the earth. Avoid sunscreens that contain oxybenzone and Vitamin A and opt instead for a chemical-free cream. You’ll be putting fewer toxins into the earth and into your baby.
Read more about earth-safe sunscreens -
Hand It Down
Babies grow out of their old stuff pretty quickly. Suddenly you’re left with cribs, clothes, and toys that you can’t use. Instead of tossing them, consider selling them to a baby consignment store or donating them to mothers in need. While you’re at it, buy some of your own child’s things used instead of new. Unless safety is a concern (as with used car seats) why spend — and consume — more when you can reuse?
Read how this mom began to reconsider her buying habits
I am all for helping the environment and setting a good example for my child, however your story is inaccurate. Cloth diapering is just as bad for the environment because of the excessive water use. Google it! http://www.physorg.com/news102788660.html
That study says nothing about the water used to produce the disposable diapers in the first place, which I suspect is phenominally higher than the water used to wash cloth.
Mollysmom, then I suppose we should all be using disposable plates, cups and utensils as well right?
“A four-year study by the British Environment Agency found that the electricity used and greenhouses gases generated washing and drying cloth diapers was equally damaging to the environment as burying disposable diapers in landfills.”
I wouldn’t say this exactly. Yes water is used and greenhouse gases are produced, but how does that equal “equally damaging to the environment as burying disposable diapers in landfills”. The disposable diaper companies aren’t required to, nor do they volunteer, report water and energy consumption in the production of their diapers. However, as an Environmental Scientist I know that paper products are notorious when it comes to water consumption during production. Most-likely: cloth diaper care requires less water than the production of disposables. At worst: cloth diaper care requires an equal amount of water as disposable diaper production. As far as energy uses are concerned, my washer certainly consumes far far far less energy than the several mega ton industrial machines that produce disposable diapers. I admit, I have no numerical facts, mostly because the disposable diaper industry knows that releasing actual water and energy use numbers would be the final nail in their coffins, but it doesn’t take much common sense to realize these things.
So in the end, maybe just as much water and energy is spent, but about a bazzilian diapers don’t have to go in landfills with cloth. Besides, don’t most folks realize it’s technically illegal to throw away poop in a landfill. It’s a bio-hazard and the law requires that it be scraped off into the toilet. Might as well just use cloth at that point
.
Anyways, I’m really no clothe nazi. I occasionally use ‘sposies, I just wanted to set the record straight. People who say “I don’t use clothe diapers because they still make water and energy waste” are just trying to make themselves feel better for using disposables. Don’t do this. If disposables are what your family needs, then that’s enough for me.
Cloth diapers as well as disposables have a water/energy manufacturing cost as well.