# Cloth Diapers Right After Birth???? Even with meconium



## kmecke (Jun 30, 2005)

What have you all done before?

We are planning a home/water birth and we use cloth diapers. But what about the meconium??? Do you use cloth diapers when you know the baby is going to poop a lot of meconium right after birth???

Just wanted to hear how others have handled this part.

Thanks!!!


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## studentmama (Jan 30, 2004)

Oh yeah totally. If you are worried about the stains, there are liners you could get for those first few poops.


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## alegna (Jan 14, 2003)

Two babies- cloth from diaper one. No sposies at all. No mec. stains.

-Angela


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## Carlin (Oct 14, 2006)

Is there a trick for washing meconium stains out of diapers? This will be our first, and I'm planning on using cloth from the start, but was thinking of using liners at first...


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## alegna (Jan 14, 2003)

Nope. No trick. IME mec doesn't stain. Regular breastfed poo stains much more.

Just wash them. With ds it took a couple of washes, but it washed clean no problem.

-Angela


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## dogmom327 (Apr 19, 2007)

We plan to CD this baby from day one


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## Jane (May 15, 2002)

I haven't cloth diapered a newborn, but I do work at a birth center and we get lots! of mec on things - blankets, hats, sheets, towels, etc. I've never had meconium stain. I remove any solid chucks of mec. Then I wash with bleach and soap on a long wash. No problems.


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## Cherry Alive (Mar 11, 2007)

We'd really like to do cloth from the start. I packed a few prefolds with snappies and covers and one really nice bamboo fitted (which we may use for the ride home).

However, I also packed a couple 1st Generation disposables just in case we decide we feel too tired or overwhelmed to want to deal with laundry. Since it's our first baby/birthing, I figured it wouldn't hurt to be prepared.

If we never use the pack of disposables, we can donate them to a women's shelter.


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## mamatoady (Mar 16, 2004)

I did with #1 use cloth from day one. The meconium was nasty, but not as nasty as a plastic diaper on a newborn!

sarah


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## Ianthe (Dec 19, 2006)

I plan to buy one package of sposies and then use cloth after they are gone.. I am afraid of the meconium too, and don't want to deal with laundry for a couple days after the birth.


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## Full Heart (Apr 27, 2004)

Cded 4 kids from diaper one and never had any problems. In fact I still have the same diapers so I know they are stain free. I have way worse stains from the toddler days when they are eating food.


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## alegna (Jan 14, 2003)

There are so few diapers in the couple of days right after birth, that you don't need to do laundry for a few days IME.

-Angela


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## Talula Fairie (Jan 7, 2005)

I did cloth right after the birth of my second child and the meconium stains washed out just fine.


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## inky leeuhhh (Aug 2, 2007)

i dont worry too much about stains on diapers unless they are super nice dipes that i may want to re sell. for the nb stage though, its all prefolds and boring pul covers, which i am not too worried about getting stains on.


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## Carlin (Oct 14, 2006)

I'm so glad to hear this!







: I figure I'm best just to not have disposables in the house, then no one will be tempted to use them. I have a friend giving me some newborn diapes that I'll want to give back, so I might not use them for the first couple days, as I'm going to top up with some of my own too, just in case. I've been lurking on the diaper forum and I think I know what I want. Now I just need to find somewhere to keep them so I can start shopping.







:


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## chumani (Apr 12, 2002)

I have used cloth from 1st diaper on with all 7 of my kids, newest is now 12 days old. I use flat-folds to start as they are so adjustable depending on size of babe (I have had from 6lb 3oz to 9lb 4 oz). Newest little one was 6lb 10oz. My flats only had stains from when we used them on a toddler for a back country trip, they came out with a couple sunnings. Mec doesn't stain, I just do a hot wash with extra rinse w/vinegar.

Best wishes on coming babies!
Sarah


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## Ianthe (Dec 19, 2006)

hmmm... I think you are all changing my mind about CDing from day one. I plan on just using prefolds and covers, but I have also been looking at fitteds and AIOs too.


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## LiLStar (Jul 7, 2006)

We CDed from day one. I don't remember the mec being all that bad. I kept wondering what all the talk was about with mec being like "tar" or hard to wipe off, because it wasn't like that at all. I didn't get to see the very first dipe though, so maybe that one was the scary one and all the rest I saw were just tame, ha. And I, personally, have never cared about stains on the inside of diapers. You never see it when the diaper is on anyway, so its irrelevant to me.


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## FernG (Feb 14, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *alegna* 
Nope. No trick. IME mec doesn't stain. Regular breastfed poo stains much more.

Just wash them. With ds it took a couple of washes, but it washed clean no problem.

-Angela

I agree. meconium is harder to get off of the baby's butt than out of a cloth diaper. By sure to oil your baby's butt so that it will wipe right off.


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## gourmetphoto (Jan 19, 2009)

How many diapers should I plan on taking to the hospital with me to keep my baby out of sposies?


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## gourmetphoto (Jan 19, 2009)

what should I oil my baby's butt with? Olive Oil?


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## Michigan Mama (Jun 25, 2008)

I'm back and forth this time...I know they'll give us a pack of sposies at the hospital. That seems so much easier to me than dragging clean dipes there and carting dirty ones home when I'm already tired. Am I just lazy?


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## K&JsMaMa (May 26, 2002)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *LizzyQ* 
I plan to buy one package of sposies and then use cloth after they are gone.. I am afraid of the meconium too, and don't want to deal with laundry for a couple days after the birth.

This is what I'm planning on doing also.


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## FernG (Feb 14, 2008)

We didn't use covers and we still didn't use more than 6 diapers per day for the first week. We changed after the dampness went through the fitted or prefold diaper. the pees are so tiny and so infrequent that it's not big deal.

Oil the baby's butt with olive oil if you want.

You will be surprised how chemically disposables smell when you are holding your fresh little baby. The hospital ones are full of cheep perfume.


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## durafemina (Feb 11, 2004)

we used cloth from the start. Mec washes out *very* easily - no special attention to the laundry and we certainly didn't do any for the first couple of days.

Olive oil works well to keep the mec from sticking to baby though!


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## Erinz (Mar 1, 2006)

We didn't find a need for covers the first few weeks. Their pee is so little! Little teeny bladders! Awww









As for how many dipes to take to the hospital I'd ask how long you plan to be there? I'd think 15 for 2 days would be plenty? You can do naked baby under the blankets with a towell underneath them, or just wrap a washcloth around them too if you get worried about running out. I loved having my naked babe right on me. We were at the hosp and if any poop came out I figured that's what the nurses were there for since I didn't need them for anything else







They were just happy to see us bonding so well and a mommy so interested in keeping her babe with her. We had a great postpardum experience in the hospital.

Definitely cloth diapering from the start with this one.

I hadn't thought about oil on the bum for the sticky mec. I'd use raw coconut oil. Thanks for the idea!


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## ThreeJane (Mar 8, 2003)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *footprintsbaby* 
I'm back and forth this time...I know they'll give us a pack of sposies at the hospital. That seems so much easier to me than dragging clean dipes there and carting dirty ones home when I'm already tired. Am I just lazy?

Nope, you do what you have to do to make things easiest for yourself!


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## MamaMonica (Sep 22, 2002)

Moved to Diapering.


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## Muj (Sep 4, 2008)

We've been doing cloth since day 1, we took 3 diapers to the hospital, and the whole while there we used the hospitals dipes, which were cloth too! Innit neat?

We did go for a hospital tour before delivery and they showed us a rack of laundry so I knew they had cloth dipes but then kind of assumed it was a common hospital practice.


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## DevaMajka (Jul 4, 2005)

I was planning on cutting up an old (holey, half cut up already) sheet to make liners for the meconium. Then I realized I still have some of those paper liners that I bought for ds and didn't use. I imagine either way would fix any worries of stains


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## CookAMH (Jun 2, 2008)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Erinz* 

I hadn't thought about oil on the bum for the sticky mec. I'd use raw coconut oil. Thanks for the idea!

I have that too and thought of using it...though I wonder, would it absorb more than olive oil since it's more likely to be solid in your room and you'll need to rub it in a little more to soften it, rather than already-liquid olive oil?


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## eloise24 (Nov 17, 2005)

We cd-ed from the start . . . mec wasn't really a problem mostly because DH was holding baby after she was born, while they moved me from the water tub to the bed . . .and she pooed ALL over him, HAHAHA!


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