How green is your baby?

Baby with bottle of milk

We all want to give our children the best start in life, says Pem Charnley. Here are some tips for a happy green baby

In this article

Ethical toys

Babies will chew almost anything, so it's good to know what's in their toys. Environmental campaign organisation Greenpeace first raised this issue with its 'Toxic toys' campaign, alerting people to potentially harmful products added during toy manufacture.

EU law now ensures that hazardous chemicals are banned, but Greenpeace says there remain "loopholes" which may cause health problems in some children.

If you want to cut out synthetic chemicals, there are plenty of natural toys to choose from. "It's best to buy wooden toys," says Julie Rae from ethical toy shop, toy-to-you. "And make sure they have been painted using non-toxic paints and varnishes."

A wide range of fairly traded toys are also available, which guarantee a fair price and good working conditions to communities in the developing world.

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Green nappies

Eight million dirty nappies end up in our bins every single day. The cocktail of plastics and chemicals used in them means they could take up to 400 years to biodegrade.

If you don't want your little one contributing to this rubbish dump, there is a simple alternative. Reusable nappies are green and can also save you money – around £500 according to the Women's Environmental Network.

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Baby milk

Purely from an ecological perspective, breast milk is a good green option; it's free, involves no packaging and doesn't harm the environment.

Today's formula milk is considered safe and nutritious. But unlike breastfeeding, which mothers have been doing for nearly half a million years, formula has only been around for half a century.

Originally designed as a lifesaving mixture for orphans and foundlings, formula milk also ranks last in the World Health Organisation's preferred methods of infant feeding – below breastfeeding direct, breast milk from a bottle, and breast milk from a wet nurse.

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Baby clothes

It's not always easy to resist buying new clothes for your baby, but there are alternatives:

  • Ask friends and family if they have any second-hand baby clothes – chances are they'll be as new, and won't cost you a penny.
  • Failing that, the Freecycle network is a global email list where people give things away that they no longer need – a non-profit garage sale where is everything is free.
The main aim is to avoid sending unwanted stuff to landfill, and you can often find some real gems – everything from baby clothes to prams.

Sourcing second hand also means you'll be sticking to the popular green mantra of 'reduce, reuse and recycle' – cutting your and your baby's impact on the planet's resources.

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Organic baby food

Having a baby is one of the biggest triggers for starting to buy organic food; for many parents, it gives them peace of mind. Most pesticides and synthetic fertilisers are ruled out of organic food production.

Experts still disagree about the exact health benefits of organic. Certainly, all baby food – organic or otherwise – is covered by special legislation. Preservatives, colourings and added salt are forbidden because babies can’t process them.

But many parents don't want to risk their baby's health, and want to buy only the most natural foods. That explains why more than half of all baby food sold in the UK is organic.

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