The Best Eco-Friendly Baby Products
You’re welcoming a new baby into your life, and you want to make sure they’re safe, healthy, and happy. That means you need to get some of the best eco-friendly baby products.
This comprehensive list will cover everything from eco-friendly new baby essentials to eco-friendly toddler products. That way, you can get everything you need without having to worry about hidden toxins or harm to the environment.
Are you attending a baby shower and looking for a thoughtful and useful gift idea? Then be sure to check out this collection of the best organic baby gifts to find something parents and baby will truly love!
Why You Need Plastic-Free Baby Essentials
We often don’t think twice about the plastic products we’re buying for our kids. After all, it says BPA-free, so that means it’s safe, right? Unfortunately, new studies are beginning to suggest that even BPA-free plastics are just as hazardous.
When BPA was banned, it was replaced with another chemical called bisphenol S (BPS). Almost 81% of Americans have detectable levels of BPS in their urine. Studies have shown that BPS can affect our cells the same way BPA does.
Plus, not only is plastic leaching dangerous chemicals into our bodies, but it’s also nearly impossible to get rid of it when you don’t need it anymore. You can’t recycle most plastics, and they take thousands of years to breakdown.
Once I started reading these studies and learning more about the dangers of plastic, I made it my mission to eliminate as much plastic from my family’s life as possible.
That’s why almost all of these best eco-friendly baby products are plastic free and non-toxic.
Best of all, many of these top eco-friendly baby products come from some of the best zero waste online stores, which means you know you’re making a truly sustainable choice when you’re shopping for your baby.
Related: The Best Natural Insect Repellent for Babies
1. Diapers
Diapering is a tricky thing to handle. On the one hand, you’re incredibly busy and insanely sleep deprived when you have a new baby, so you want something that will be easy to handle.
On the other hand, you don’t really want to leave your baby in a world overrun with disposable diapers made with a non-recyclable polyethylene plastic and that leak toxic chemicals and microplastics when they breakdown.
Obviously, cloth diapers are the most eco-friendly option. If you decide to go this route, I highly recommend these cloth diapers. They come in all the styles you need, including all-in-ones, fitteds, and swim diapers.
If you give cloth diapering a try and it just doesn’t work for you, then I recommend you get these Eco by Naty disposable diapers. These diapers are made from eco-friendly and plant-based materials. They’re cruelty-free, and they don’t contain any VOCs, parabens, latex, or fragrances.
Are you looking for even more options? Then be sure to check out this post on the best eco-friendly diapers.
To make cleaning up your baby more sustainable, don’t forget to check out these best eco-friendly wipes. These non-toxic wipes are made with natural ingredients that are perfect for sensitive skin and are 100% biodegradable.
If you’re interested in reducing waste AND saving money at the same time, take a look at this post on the best reusable cloth baby wipes. You’ll even discover how to make DIY baby wipes using just 4 simple and natural ingredients.
If you’re tossing some of these eco-friendly diapers in your diaper bag for a day out, I also HIGHLY recommend throwing in this LastTissue reusable tissue pack as well. These reusable tissues are a lifesaver!
Each pack comes with six incredibly soft and reusable tissues that you can use and rewash up to 460 times. They’re perfect for wiping dirty faces, runny noses, and messy hands. Even better, just one pack can take the place of up to 2,800 single-use tissues.
2. Clothes
Once you have the diapers figured out, it’s time to dress your baby. The best clothes for your baby are the ones made from organic cotton. That’s because organic cotton offers numerous advantages over other types of fabric.
If you’re not sure what to get, this list details some of the best sustainable clothing brands for kids. Here you’ll find plenty of great options that are safe, durable, and affordable.
Plus, when it’s time to get those clothes clean, don’t forget to use one of these top non-toxic laundry detergents for babies to help protect their skin and their health!
Related: The Best Sustainable Maternity Clothes
3. Baby Bottles
We’ve already talked about the dangers of plastics leaching chemicals into your baby’s food and drink. That’s why I decided to use these best plastic-free baby bottles when my son was born.
Fortunately, there are so many unique bottles designed for safety, you don’t have to worry about your baby accidentally breaking a bottle.
Even better, when your baby starts to transition away from a bottle, you can then make the switch to one of these best non-toxic and plastic-free sippy cups.
Plus, don’t forget to pick up some organic cotton bibs and organic cotton burping cloths to make feeding time easier and cleaner!
4. Feeding Bowls
When your baby starts to wean off milk and transition to solid food, you’ll need a way to feed them. Since you want to make sure nothing plastic touches your baby’s food, you can skip the plastic bowls and go with silicone or bamboo instead.
This silicone learning baby plate and this silicone learning baby bowl are two great options because they have sections to help separate food and measure healthy portions. They also have a suction cup base that helps prevent messy spills.
Another one of the best eco-friendly baby products that we use in our home and absolutely love are from Bobo&Boo. These dinnerware pieces are made from natural bamboo, which means they’re durable, non-toxic, and sustainable. You can get a 5-piece children’s dinnerware set to get everything you need, or you can pick up individual pieces.
As your kids get older and you start packing a lunch for them, you can make sure it’s a zero waste lunch by getting these stainless steel containers to hold food. I recommend getting a few containers now because they’re so convenient and versatile.
You can use them to hold leftovers, store snacks, and they’re also perfect if you’re planning a zero waste Disney trip!
5. Feeding Utensils
Once you get the plates and bowls, you can’t forget the feeding utensils! Again, you want the best plastic-free baby products, so you should look for silicone or bamboo utensils.
If you prefer bamboo, these bamboo utensils come in a convenient carrying pouch and are ideal for lunchboxes or zero waste travel. Here are some other bamboo utensils to consider:
- Baby Bamboo Fork and Spoon
- Baby Bamboo Feeding Spoon
- Kid’s Bamboo Fork and Spoon Set
- Kid’s Bamboo Fork and Spoon
If you’re interested in silicone, I loved using this silicone learning spoon set because it comes with one feeding spoon I could use to feed my son and one self-feeding spoon he could use to learn how to feed himself.
These baby silicone spoons are also a great option because they’re the ideal size for tiny mouths and tiny hands.
If you’re truly committed to removing all plastic during your baby’s mealtime, you can also get this wooden high chair that’s made from sustainably harvested rubberwood.
6. Steamer Bowl
Amazingly, I have a child who doesn’t mind eating his vegetables. There are two reasons why I think this is the case.
First, we let him grow a lot of his favorite vegetables in his own children’s garden. He takes so much pride in tending to his garden and eating the vegetables that he grows.
Second, as soon as he started eating solid food, I bought this glass steamer bowl so he could have steamed vegetables every night for dinner.
If you only buy one plastic-free baby item on this list, I can’t tell you how much I recommend this one.
It makes steaming vegetables so easy that you’ll have no problem introducing your kids to nutritious food at a very young age. You can even use the steamer to make your own healthy meals!
7. Plastic-Free Toys
If you think you have to give your kids plastic toys because they’re the only option, think again! There are a variety of great companies out there making safe and non-toxic toys for kids.
One example is PlanToys, which makes all of its toys from sustainably harvested rubberwood trees that can no longer produce latex. They also use non-formaldehyde glues and non-toxic water-based dyes.
Noble Carriage is another good option for organic and wooden toys your kids will enjoy playing with.
You can even make natural toys for your kids. While some brands of store-bought playdough can contain borax (which is actually a pesticide that can kill ants) this homemade natural playdough only contains a few simple ingredients that are completely safe. It’s also really fun to make!
Related: Do You Know Which Scary Chemicals Are Hiding in Your Kid’s Toys?
Of course, just because a toy is plastic, that doesn’t mean it’s automatically dangerous. For example, Green Toys makes all of its toys from 100% recycled plastic milk jugs. Not only do these toys contain no BPA, phthalates, or PVC, but they also have no external coatings, paints, or dyes.
Plus, don’t forget about making all of those holidays a little more eco-friendly. These eco-friendly Easter gifts can help you put together a more sustainable basket, these are some of the most eco-friendly Halloween treats you can hand out, and these awesome eco-friendly gifts for kids can make every celebration more sustainable.
Once you pick up some of these toys, don’t forget to take a look at this post on how to naturally clean toys. You’ll learn how to clean and sanitize everything from wooden toys and rubber toys to electronics and stuffed animals without using any dangerous or toxic chemicals.
8. Pacifiers
You can still give your baby a soothing pacifier without having to turn to yucky plastic options. Instead, get a natural pacifier that’s made from 100% pure rubber from sustainably grown rubber trees.
Since these pacifiers are made with natural rubber, they don’t contain any chemical softeners, colorants, BPA, phthalates, PVC, or parabens.
Another good option is the HEVEA natural rubber pacifier. These pacifiers are made from 100% natural rubber instead of synthetic rubber from petroleum. Since it’s a completely plant-based product, it’s biodegradable at the end of its life.
9. Teething Supplies
Every parent has to deal with it at some point: the crying and crankiness of teething pain. Fortunately, you have several natural teething supplies you can use to help ease their discomfort.
Here are some good plastic-free teething options to consider:
- Bunny Ears Teething Ring
- Silicone Teething Rings
- Stacking Tower Teething Toy
- Beaded Teething Ring
- Silicone Teething Necklace
- Amber Teething Necklace
10. Oral Care
Once your baby starts getting their baby teeth, you’ll need to think about oral care.
A baby toothbrush is the perfect way to get your child used to brushing teeth. While you’ll likely see options that slide over your finger, I actually don’t recommend them.
We used that style for awhile, but when my son started getting his teeth and he would bite down, he ended up biting my finger. And it hurt!
That’s when we made the switch to this silicone baby toothbrush. It’s made from naturally non-toxic silicone that’s BPA and PVC-free.
When your kids get a little older and you’re getting them used to a regular oral care routine, be sure to check out these best bamboo toothbrushes for a great child-sized option and these best zero waste toothpastes for one your kids will love.
11. Bedtime
Your baby will be spending a lot of time sleeping in their crib. That’s why you want to make sure their crib is a clean and non-toxic place.
Be sure you get a crib mattress that’s MADE SAFE Certified. This means it’s made with ingredients not known or suspected to cause harm to human health, and it doesn’t contain ingredients that release harmful vapors, gases, or by-products.
Related: The Best Non-Toxic and Organic Crib Mattress
Even though these mattresses are waterproof, I still recommend picking up a mattress pad for a little extra protection and to help regulate your baby’s temperature to reduce the risk of overheating.
Next, get an organic cotton fitted sheet that’s soft and breathable.
These organic cotton diaper booster pads are the last thing that I highly, HIGHLY recommend for a better night’s sleep for everyone. We used to have a heck of a time with my son’s diaper leaking at night.
But then we simply put one of these booster pads in his cloth diaper every night, and they absorbed the extra liquid so we had no more diaper leaks! Best of all, since they’re reusable, I didn’t have to waste money every single month buying new ones.
Finally, I want to share with you the best piece of advice I received when I was pregnant with my son.
Pick up an extra mattress pad and an extra fitted sheet. That way, when those inevitable accidents happen at 3:00 in the morning, you can just strip the crib, put on a clean mattress pad and fitted sheet, and deal with everything else in the morning when you’re a little less sleep deprived.
Related: How to Make a Natural Mattress Stain Remover
All of the Eco-Friendly Baby Products You Need
Thanks to this list, you now know all of the best eco-friendly baby products you need to help your child through every stage of life. Most importantly, since these are plastic-free baby products, you never have to worry about your child being exposed to dangerous chemicals in your home.
More Eco-Friendly Living Tips
Now that you know the best eco-friendly baby products to get for your child, are you interested in even more great tips that can help everyone in your family live a more sustainable life? Then be sure to check out some of our other popular posts:
- Best Children’s Books About Sustainability
- How to Naturally Ease Eczema
- Eco-Friendly Indoor Activities for Kids
- 20 Awesome Eco-Friendly School Supplies
Nilah
Saturday 12th of December 2020
As with all clothing items, the most environmentally friendly baby clothes are the ones that already exist (even cotton has a huge environmental impact, with approximately 20,0 of water needed to produce just g of the stuff). This means the most eco-conscious option is to head down the pre-loved route.
Kristen
Saturday 12th of December 2020
Yes, pre-loved items are always the most environmentally friendly choice. If someone needs something new, then these options are the next best thing.