Ten Reasons Why You Should Not Buy Generic Diapers
You may be tempted to forego the cost of name-brand diapers for your baby, and opt for generic ones. While I understand the initial appeal of saving money (and heaven knows babies cost plenty!), I have a word to the wise – think twice about buying generic diapers.
10. Generic diapers run small in waist size. Now, this might seem to be a minor detail to someone without a baby. But you purchase those diapers in that size, thinking they will fit your baby. Nothing is more frustrating than trying to squeeze the little Buddha belly into a too-small diaper and tape it shut before the baby does a gymnastic move and shows you Olympic-level agility. Name-brand diapers are usually pretty true to size.
9. Poor fit is a hallmark of generic diapers. Even when you’ve managed to get your little angel to be still long enough to get the diaper around the belly and get the tapes in place, chances are a generic diaper will not fit properly. There will be a gap around the legs, or one side will smooth over better than the other, or any number of other fitting problems will occur. Name-brand diapers will fit each baby’s body shape differently, but once you find a name-brand diaper that fits your baby well, you won’t have these problems.
8. Generic diapers are baggy between the legs. I’ve never seen a generic diaper that didn’t have this problem – there is too much diaper to fit between a baby’s legs. So the diaper hangs down way too low, interfering with the all-important leg movement that is constantly going on. Most name-brand diapers have just the right amount of diaper between the legs, so they absorb without interfering.
7. A baby’s legs can get irritated around the openings of a generic diaper. For some reason, the material used to make these diapers cannot possibly be designed to be around the “soft as a baby’s bottom” skin that babies have. It’s apparently for some industrial use, because every baby I’ve ever known who wore these diapers has gotten rub marks and/or a rash at the leg openings. Most name-brand diapers don’t have this issue, as they are made with material that might actually be for diapers.
6. The tapes on generic diapers pull off very easily. I’m talking about the two tapes on either side of the diaper actually coming off in your hand with very little pulling. There are times during the diapering of a baby when you need to pull the diaper taut – not really tight, but snug – and this small amount of pulling should not be enough to pull these tapes off! I mean, these diapers are supposed to withstand the stress and strain the little angel puts on them – a small tug from the parent shouldn’t cause the whole tape to come off. Again, name-brand diapers don’t usually have this problem.
5. The tapes don’t hold. As I said, these diapers are supposed to withstand the bend and stretch of baby doing whatever it is that babies do. When the tapes pop open because the Buddha belly proves too much for them, there’s a problem with the design or materials. Anyone who’s ever had a baby knows that a loose, falling-off, or completely missing diaper is a disaster just waiting to happen. Certainly name-brand diapers have tapes that hold up to whatever babies can dish out.
4. The generic diaper itself tears easily. A jab with a slightly-sharp parental fingernail or the corner of a watch or ring, and the generic diaper is history. Not only that, but once babies start moving a lot and picking up toys, etc., it becomes very easy for the baby him/herself to tear them! Definitely not material that is designed to hold up in the jungles of babydom.
3. Generic diapers can’t be resealed once the tape is removed. Many parents the world over have thought that a baby’s diaper needed changed when it actually didn’t. If it isn’t necessary to change that diaper, then why throw it away? It’s much better, both economically and ecologically, to just reattach the tape. But the tape can’t be resealed on generic diapers! Oh, the tape may seem to be stuck. You may even rub it and press it and think to yourself how clever you are. But one deep-knee-bend with that Buddha belly and – pop! Off the tape comes! It saves money and frustration to buy a name-brand diaper that allows resealing and repositioning of the tapes.
2. A child with any level of manual dexterity can easily tear generic diapers off. The tapes on generic diapers are usually quite stiff and protrude a bit, as opposed to name-brand diapers which have softer tapes that don’t stick out so much. And what is more attractive to a child who is just figuring out how to grab things than a protruding diaper tape?!
1. The worst thing about generic diapers – they don’t hold enough! Oh, sure, generics will probably hold a sufficient amount while a baby is small. But once they start eating solid foods, and drinking out of cups, and moving around a lot – watch out! Their production levels start increasing and diapers can quickly reach maximum load levels. If this happens with a name-brand diaper, there is usually no problem. But with a generic diaper, the load can start escaping and there is no containment system that can stop the overflow. Disaster has struck.
Please do yourself and your baby a huge favor – buy name-brand diapers! Find one that fits your baby’s body shape best (yes, they do fit differently), and stick with that brand. For everyone’s sake!
