“You’re Using What?” Dealing With Comments About Reusable Nappies

Once you become a parent, it seems that everyone and their dog has something to say about the way you raise your baby. If you pick up your baby when they cry you’re spoiling them, they should have socks on even though it’s 25C out there…

It can make a trip to the park feel more like a minefield at times, especially when “helpful” strangers offer their two penn’orth on subjects like weaning and . Strangers are easier to smile at and dismiss, but when your friends and family find out you’re planning to use reusable nappies with your baby, you’ll probably get some incredulous looks and a lot of comments and questions.

Like these…

“What are you going back to old-fashioned nappies for?”

Modern cloth nappies are anything but old fashioned! They’re made from specially-selected, highly absorbent fabrics and our Revolutionary Reusables are designed to fit your baby from birth to potty training.

They’re easy to put on your baby, they're effective and comfortable and if that isn’t enough to convince sceptical relatives, then the savings you’re making in carbon emissions and money should! 

“Aren’t your reusable nappies smelly?”

When they’re full of poo, yes. When single-use nappies are full of poo they also smell, but they stay smelly because they’re usually thrown, complete with poo, into a bin where they wait to be collected.

Once they’ve been collected, those single-use nappies typically head to a landfill, where they’ll stay for hundreds of years. 

Your reusable nappies, on the other hand, spend two or three hours in a washing machine, a few more on a washing line and then return to action, smelling (albeit briefly) of fresh air and cotton. 

“You’re making lots of work for yourself!”

If you were soaking, boiling and folding old-fashioned terry nappies then you’d be making lots of work for yourself, but with modern reusable nappies, it’s off with the pooey liner and into the washing machine.

OK, with single-use nappies you don’t have to wash them - you just throw them away - but you do have to go out and buy new packs every week. This costs money and, probably, takes more time than filling and emptying your washing machine.

“Those cloth nappies are bulky!”

True, reusable nappies are bulkier than single-use nappies, but this is because they use layers of fabric to absorb liquid rather than absorbent gels. 

Single-use nappies start off thin and lightweight, but they quickly expand as your baby wees into them, ending up as bulky as a reusable diaper by the time you change them.

“You won’t be able to leave the house!”

Of course you can go out with your baby if you use reusable nappies! You don’t even have to be much more organised or prepared than you would if you were using disposable nappies.

All you need is our Out & About wet bag and some reusable wipes, as well as some liners and you’re sorted. Even if you have to change a pooey nappy while you’re out you can throw the poo in the toilet and flush it away, or bundle it up in a liner and dispose of it at home. 

You don’t need to worry about smells once the used nappies are in our wet bag, even if there’s a poo in there somewhere, because it closes securely enough to trap any odours until you open it at home.

“Won’t cloth nappies give your baby nappy rash?”

Reusable nappies are no more likely to cause nappy rash (1) than single-use nappies as long as you change them frequently enough. Some parents say that reusables are actually kinder to their baby’s delicate skin than disposables because they don’t contain gels and other additives. 

Most comments that you’ll get about using reusable nappies will be positive, as more people are aware of the environmental impact of single-use nappies. 

Some people will simply be curious about them, so talk to them and you could end up being one of our Bambassadors on your next park outing!

Citations and References

(1) National Health Service (NHS). ‘Caring For a Newborn Baby. Nappy Rash.’ 2023. Web. www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/caring-for-a-newborn/nappy-rash