Our family is fortunate enough to be able to survive without the assistance of the Food Bank. But being in the big city we are witness to many families who can’t. We always make an effort to support our local food bank, though sadly the thought only seems to occur to us during the holiday season, and usually that donation is food items. But non-food items are also required, specifically diapers.
I was surprised to read in a recent study commissioned by Kimberly Clark’s Huggies brand, Every Little Bottom Study, that ‘nearly 1 in 5 Canadian moms struggle with diaper needs’. Some other interesting things highlighted in the study about the 1 in 5 Canadian moms in diaper need:
- 16% of these moms have cut back on food purchases for their family.
- 29% extend the amount of time their child is kept in a diaper
- 16% have stayed home and 6% have kept their kids away from day care because they don’t have enough diapers
“This study helps us understand a serious issue that has been largely unrecognized until now ‘diaper need’ – mothers struggling to provide diapers for their babies. With the Every Little Bottom Study we are now able to understand the implications not having enough diapers has on both mothers and babies. It shows how small things, like diapers, really do make a big difference in the lives of Canadian families,” said Dr. Nicole Letourneau, a lead researcher on the study and professor at the University of New Brunswick.
“The ritual of diapering is one that creates a bonding experience between mothers and babies. Without enough diapers for the necessary routine changes, mothers and babies are feeling distressed which makes the bonding process as well as the job of parenting more difficult.”
Huggies has created the Every Little Bottom program to help get diapers to babies in need by starting with a donation of 2.5 million diapers in during the next eight-months, including half a million to Food Banks Canada to distribute through their network.
You can help too by donating funds and diapers to your local Food Bank.
Yes, some people might say that switching to cloth diapers is more affordable (and environmentally friendly) but shouldn’t that be a mother’s choice and not forced upon her because of financial reasons.
Visit Huggies for more information on the Every Little Bottom Program and to see the full Every Little Bottom Study.
