( WHNT ) — News 19 is two weeks into our ‘Great Diaper Drive,’ and we need your help reaching our goal of collecting 200,000 diapers and wipes for the Food Bank of North Alabama’s Diaper Bank before the drive ends Thursday.
Young families in our area are urgently in need of diapers, and they’re a donation item that is often overlooked – but as many as one in two U.S. households struggle to afford them.
Diapers can be around 20 to 30 cents for just one diaper, which adds up quick, especially if you have more than one child that needs them.
Babies typically stay in diapers until they’re 18 months to 3 years so there is a range. And larger diapers can be more expensive.
Healthy Families Program Manager Michelle Marty explains that a child sitting for long periods in a soiled or wet diaper can have long-term psychological effects – including isolation and abandonment.
“Obviously, any time they soil a diaper, they need a change right away. Not changing that increases the likelihood with infections and germs and all that bacteria,” Marty said.