Vaccines have been a hot topic for the past few years, but in this post, I’m not going to talk about that vaccine, instead, I’m going to address the vaccine concern cloth diaper parents have had for many years.
Can you cloth diaper baby during their routine vaccines? Yes, you can cloth diaper your baby following their routine vaccinations, including after the Rotavirus vaccine. Even better, no special precautions need to be taken when washing cloth diapers following a vaccine.
Dr. Arunima Agarwal, M.D., is a board-certified general pediatrician based in New York. I asked her about the topic of cloth diapering after vaccines and she confirmed there are no special concerns around using cloth diapers following any of the other standard infant vaccines.
Can You Use Cloth Diapers After The Rotavirus Vaccine?
Many cloth diapering parents have special concerns about the Rotavirus (or Rotavirus) vaccine and their cloth diapers. I asked Dr. Agarwal about this specific vaccine.
Unlike most other standard infant vaccines, Rotavirus is a “live virus” vaccine and as such it’s commonly believed that it could wind up in a baby’s poop, therefore, making cloth diapers contagious for a time after this vaccine. Many parents switch to disposables for a time after their baby gets the Rotavirus Vaccine but it is not necessary.
Dr. Agarwal explained that there are, “No special considerations for diaper changes after this [the Rotavirus] vaccine.”
This advice is true even for those with immunocompromised individuals at home.
“If your doctor recommends this vaccine to your child, then no change in diapers is necessary, even if the parent has medical problems themselves. Follow good hygiene practice with proper handwashing,” Dr. Agarwal said. “The risk of viral shedding and transmission between vaccinated neonates and the household contacts is low.”
Can Your Baby Use Cloth Diapers After the Flu Vaccine?
Yes! You can also use cloth diapers on your baby after they get their flu vaccine without any fear of the flu virus being transmitted onto those diapers or wash problems caused by the vaccine.
According to Health Canada, “The influenza vaccine is safe and well-tolerated. The influenza vaccine cannot cause influenza illness because inactivated influenza vaccines do not contain live virus and live attenuated influenza vaccines contain weakened viruses.”
What this boils down to is that the contagious part of the vaccine is dead or so weak it can’t be passed from person to person, including in their waste. This means that there is no problem cloth diapering your baby after they’ve received their annual flu vaccine.
Save Your Sanity and Avoid Diaper Smells and Rashes with This Easy-To-Follow Digital Handbook. This Ultimate Wash and Care Guide Will Give You the Step-By-Step Coaching Your Mom Group Can't Provide!
More Information
If you have more questions about washing and caring for your cloth diapers, make sure to check out the Cloth Diaper Wash and Care for beginners page here.
April Duffy
April is the founder of Cloth Diapers for Beginners and author of The Cloth Diaper Wash & Care Handbook. Since 2015, April has helped well over 75,000 parents and caregivers cloth diaper their children through this website, her book, her YouTube Channel, and the Cloth Diapers for Beginners Facebook Group.
Save Your Sanity and Avoid Diaper Smells and Rashes with This Easy-To-Follow Digital Handbook. This Ultimate Wash and Care Guide Will Give You the Step-By-Step Coaching Your Mom Group Can't Provide!