Facts for mommies and mommies-to-be:
Your baby will spend about 25,000 hours in diapers and need about 6,000 diaper changes during the first years of life. Since your baby will spend so much time in diapers, let’s take a closer look at disposable diapers. On the market since the early 60’s, the disposable diaper changed from a plastic diaper with a lot of paper fluff to a diaper constructed of a waterproof plastic outer layer, an absorbent pad with super absorbent chemicals, and an inner liner. The super absorbent chemical, sodium polyacrylate, absorbs and holds fluids in the diaper. This chemical has been linked to toxic shock syndrome, can cause allergic reactions, and is lethal to cats if inhaled. This chemical is toxic. Dioxin, the most toxic of all cancer-linked chemicals, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), is a byproduct of bleaching paper. The disposables also use dyes, potencially harmful. The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) received reports that fragrances caused headaches, dizziness, and rashes. Problems may arise if plastic parts of diaper are torn by the babies and taken to the mouth or nose!

About 5 million tons of untreated body excrement, which may carry over 100 intestinal viruses, is brought to landfills via disposables. This may contribute to groundwater contamination and attract insects that carry and transmit diseases. In 1990, 18 billion disposables were thrown into United States landfills. Is it wise to use 3.4 billion gallons of oil and over 250,000 trees a year to manufacture disposables that end up in our already overburdened landfills? These disposables are not readily biodegradable. The paper must be exposed to air and sun to decompose. Thirty percent of a disposable diaper is plastic and is not compostable. Even if the rest of the diaper could be composted, these plants could only handle 400 of the 10,000 tons of diapers tossed in landfills EACH DAY, assuming they didn’t have to process any other compostable garbage. Biodegradable diapers have cornstarch added to the plastic to break it into tiny pieces. The pieces still end up in landfills.

And the good news are:
Nowadays there are several alternatives to normal disposable diapers. You may find organic diapers (biodegradable, without bleach or other chemicals that may harm the baby's skin and the environment, you may even order with amazon.com) or you may turn to old-style reusable diapers. Don't be scared right away! These diapers don't need to be tied with pins or anything. They already come in the shape of the disposable diaper, with elastics and attachable strips, and experienced mommies say it's easy to clean....

It's cool and easy on your purse, your baby's skin and spares the environment ;-)

And if you are a mommy-to-be in Macau, it will not cost you a thing to take a peek at THIS! It may sound strange at first, but the info may be useful!