Real Nappies and Hospitals

Waitemata DHB is the largest of New Zealand's healthcare operators. It serves a population of half a million people and its hospitals care for 6,000 newborn babies each year. Its Waitakere Hospital has adopted Real Nappies reusable nappies, a move it expects will prevent 80,000 disposable diapers going to landfill each year.

"At Waitakere Maternity unit we are using Real Nappies as our choice of nappy for babies. Every parent of a newborn baby is given the option of using Real Nappies. Real Nappies are easy to use, leakproof and fit our newborns snugly regardless of birth weight.

"We chose to offer parents the Real Nappies system because of its ease of use, quality and effectiveness. It is another eco-friendly option for families in West Auckland. Offering parents cloth nappies whilst in hospital means parents can really give their baby the best possible start in life, whilst saving money and the environment at the same time."

Helen Ngatai Midwifery Manager Waitakere Hospital WaitemataDHB

National newspaper the New Zealand Herald reported that research showed disposable nappies used 3.5 times more energy than reusable cloth nappies, and eight times more non-renewable raw materials and 90 times more renewable materials than reusable cloth nappies. The research also showed that it took as much energy to produce one disposable nappy as it did to wash a cloth nappy 200 times, further emphasising the benefits to the environment of choosing reusable cloth nappies over disposable nappies.