Being eco-friendly can seem incredibly difficult for many families, and it can be even harder for families with children and new babies. A lot of the products for babies are disposable, from wipes to diapers to baby food, it can put pressure on parents who want to reduce their carbon footprint and be as conscious of the environment as possible, however, it is not impossible! There are many ways you can reduce, reuse and recycle items.
Here are a few tips for parents who want to be eco-friendly in their choices for baby purchases.
1. Reusable, Compostable, or Plant-Based Diapers
Moving away from single-use diapers is perhaps the best way that parents can reduce their waste. With newborns and infants using anywhere from 8 to 15 diapers a day, it can be expensive and incredibly wasteful to use traditional single-use diapers and using reusable cloth diapers. The only downside to these diapers is the need to wash them.
If you want to reduce your waste, but don’t want to be washing soiled cloth diapers every day, then there are still options available to you. This is where you can make the conscious decision to only use diapers good for the environment, such as those made from plant materials or ones that are fully compostable. With so many diaper options available to parents nowadays you can find an environmentally friendly diaper that will reduce your waste and leave you and your baby satisfied.
2. Baby Puree
When your baby begins eating solid food, you will find yourself faced with many decisions of when to start feeding, choosing if you will offer puree or baby-led weaning, and what fruit and vegetables to start them on first.
If you go the puree route, then you can easily reduce the packaging waste by making your baby food at home. It is super easy to make baby purees, and they can be frozen and stored to heat up and serve whenever you need them. This will get you away from the plastic and glass packaging that is abundant with commercial baby food.
3. Receiving Blankets
Babies are MESSY from spit-up to diaper explosions, to learning how to eat, babies are the masters of disaster. If you want to avoid using paper towels, and find yourself running through multiple facecloths a day (or find they aren’t big enough for your babies messes) then receiving blankets is a great reusable option! They can be used as wipes, burp cloths, blankets, chewies, and everything in between. Always having a receiving blanket on hand can let you clean up the biggest messes without having to use multiple cloths or throwing away multiple paper towels. They are also super soft for the baby’s skin and super convenient for parents.
No matter what choices you make as parents, you will find options available that suit your needs, budget, and most importantly your lifestyle choices. By being conscientious you can choose eco-friendly items for your babies, that will allow you to care for them and the environment at the same time.