What Cloth Diaper for the Night? - All About Nighttime Diapering

Photo by @anni.und.die.bande

The suitable diaper for daytime does not always meet the requirements for a nighttime diaper. Your baby's nighttime diaper has to withstand quite a bit more. After all, you certainly wouldn't want to unnecessarily disturb your baby's sleep at night because the diaper leaks again or sits uncomfortably. That's why we have collected the most important information for you about nighttime diapers.

What features should cloth diapers have at night? The nighttime diaper should be particularly leak-proof - even for side and stomach sleepers - and should also fit your baby comfortably and be especially absorbent.

In this article, you'll learn what requirements the cloth diaper should meet at night, which cloth diapers don't leak at night, and valuable tips for nighttime diapering.

Which Cloth Diaper for the Night?

To ensure you and your baby get through the night without unnecessary diaper incidents, the nighttime diaper should meet these requirements:

The Cloth Diaper Should Stay Leak-Proof All Night

• The cloth diaper should not leak at the top cuffs or at the legs.
• The cloth diaper should also quickly absorb all urine even for heavy wetters (babies who urinate less frequently but in larger amounts at once).
• The nighttime diaper should not leak even when lying on the side or stomach.
• The cover should be made of PUL or wool to prevent leaking.

The Cloth Diaper Should Be Comfortable

It is important that the cloth diaper fits your baby well. Make sure that the cloth diaper is the right size. It should not be too tight but should also not slip.

The Nighttime Diaper Should Be as Absorbent as Possible

To ensure your baby can wear the cloth diaper throughout the night, it is important to choose a very absorbent material. Additionally, make sure you can adjust the absorbency of the diaper, for example, by using boosters.

Simple Nighttime Diaper Changes

If your baby needs a fresh diaper at night, the changing process should be as quick and easy as possible.

Photo by @madame.vio

Suitable Cloth Diaper Systems for the Night

There are several suitable cloth diaper systems for the night. Here you will find a selection.

Fitted Diapers with Cover

Fitted diapers are made entirely of absorbent material. You will need a separate cover for the fitted diaper.

Diapering Effort: Fitted diapers are a pragmatic solution → put on the diaper and pull the cover over it. However, since they cannot be adjusted for absorbency and both parts are often not ideally matched, leaks can occur more frequently.

All-In-Two Diapers

In the All-In-Two diaper system, the cover and inserts are not sewn together. The absorbent insert is snapped into the diaper or placed in the flaps.

Diapering Effort: Diapering is a bit more cumbersome, as the inserts need to be attached to the diaper and removed when changing. Once the diaper is prepared: → Place the child on the diaper and fasten it, and push the elastics into the crease of the leg.

Insert with Wool Cover

Here, you select the appropriate insert (see below) for your baby. The cover serves as moisture protection (with regular lanolin impregnation). The covers are available as pull-up pants or can be fastened with Velcro or snaps.

Diapering Effort: The inserts must be prepared before diapering. The effort depends on the choice of insert and cover. In this system, the greatest effort lies in the care and impregnation of the wool covers.

Judes Cloth Diapers

A Judes diaper consists of two combinable parts, the absorbent material and a moisture barrier. Due to the special weave, the cotton is particularly absorbent, and the diaper remains very slim.

Diapering Effort: Diapering is very simple here → Place the inner diaper and possibly Poo Paper (if your baby still has bowel movements at night) into the cover. Place the diaper under the baby's bottom and fasten it with the Velcro closure.

Suitable Inserts

You should ensure that the cloth diaper insert fits your child. For example, if your child urinates a lot at once, the insert should be able to quickly absorb the urine.

• Cotton
• absorbs quickly, medium absorbency
• Cotton Terry
• absorbs quickly, very absorbent, but releases moisture under pressure
• Judes Booster Insert made from Organic Cotton
• absorbs quickly, very absorbent → To increase absorbency, two inserts can be combined
• Polyester / Microfiber
• absorbs quickly, very low absorbency, releases moisture under pressure
• Hemp / Linen
• absorbs slowly, very absorbent
• Bamboo
• absorbs quickly, very absorbent
• As an exception: Stay-Dry Fleece / Diaper Fleece
• absorbs slowly, but channels urine into the interior of the diaper and provides a dry feeling to the child's bottom. → Suitable for babies who are sensitive to a wet diaper

Photo by @ammenmaerchen

Judes Cloth Diapers

I would like to elaborate further on our Judes Cloth Diaper:

Judes cloth diapers are not only the perfect solution for the day but also an ideal nighttime diaper. While the absorbent and skin-friendly inner diaper made from organic cotton quickly and securely absorbs all liquids, the waterproof cover provides optimal protection. The material of both parts is breathable, ensuring a healthy diaper environment.

For additional protection at night, simply place one of our booster inserts into the inner diaper. The booster takes up minimal space and increases absorbency, allowing your baby to wear the diaper for up to twelve hours. The cotton-fleece surface is particularly soft on the baby's bottom.

If your baby pees a lot, you can even combine two boosters to further increase absorbency.

Judes cloth diapers are designed to perfectly fit different body shapes. Thanks to flexible cuffs at the back and legs, they hold particularly well and do not slip.

And there's a sustainable bonus: The longer you use your Judes and the more often you wash them, the more absorbent the material becomes. Even though Judes reach their full absorbency after a few washes, you can use them from the first wash.

Parents are convinced of Judes as a nighttime solution:

“They're really great for the night - the absorbency multiplies with them, really top!”
(Carolin Marie Neuhuber on our booster inserts)

“We use Judes for the night and have very restful nights. Everything fits, everything holds the moisture, and they also look pretty. It’s fun to diaper with Judes!”
(Anonymous)

“Judes are our first choice for the night: nothing leaks, and the baby feels comfortable.”
(Dorothee Lindenbaum)

Is Moisture in Cloth Diapers Harmful Over a Longer Period?

The moisture in the diaper is not harmful to your baby. Since the temperature inside the diaper matches your baby's body temperature, a wet diaper does not feel uncomfortable. Disposable diapers, on the other hand, have hardly any breathable properties, which causes heat to build up in the diaper. This not only creates a perfect breeding ground for bacteria and fungi but is also uncomfortable for your baby.

It's important that the nighttime diaper absorbs enough so that clothing and the bed remain dry. This is quite simple. Just adjust the required absorbency to your child's urine amount.

Moreover, feeling the wet diaper can even positively affect your baby's diaper weaning. If you diaper your baby with cloth diapers, they directly feel when they wet the diaper. This gives them a very natural bio-feedback: through this immediate sequence of action and result, even a baby can recognize the "if-then" relationship and thereby gain a (subconscious) understanding. This understanding benefits your child when becoming dry, as they already know the signals from their body.

Disposable diapers, however, ensure that the diaper always feels dry for your baby, which delays this developmental step and causes children to become dry later.

At Judes, we have deliberately developed our cloth diapers so your baby feels when they wet themselves in the diaper. This way, your baby can learn this important connection. Our study on the topic "Diaper-Free Faster with Cloth Diapers" shows: Children who were diapered with cloth diapers became diaper-free about 8 months earlier than children diapered with disposable diapers.

How Many Nighttime Diapers?

If your cloth diapers are not suitable as nighttime diapers, you will need additional nighttime diapers. Adjust the quantity to your washing schedule. For one diaper per night and a washing schedule of 4 days, you will need 4 nighttime diapers and 2 - 4 covers. Additionally, you should have 1-2 extra diapers on hand in case your child needs a new diaper during the night.

If you use Judes cloth diapers, you do not need extra nighttime diapers, just 2 - 4 booster inserts, depending on your washing schedule.

Unsuitable Cloth Diaper Systems for the Night

• All-In-One Diapers
• Pocket Diapers
• All-In-Three Diapers

Diapering at Night

Should You Change Diapers at Night?

A well-fitting cloth diaper can stay leak-proof all night. However, newborns must still be changed regularly at night. In general, the rule is: If there is a bowel movement in the diaper, you must change it.

How often you should change your baby's diaper at night depends on various factors. For example, a newborn’s digestive system is not fully developed, and they usually have a bowel movement after each meal. Therefore, you must change your newborn more frequently at night to avoid unnecessary irritation to their skin. Between three and six months of age, the digestive system usually matures, and nighttime bowel movements become a thing of the past.

For urine, it depends on the absorbency of the diaper and your child's sensitivity. If your baby becomes restless in wet diapers and has difficulty falling back asleep, you should change them.

Adiuretin – The Antidiuretic Hormone

At night, babies excrete as much urine in 11 to 13 hours as they do during 3 to 4 hours in the day. The reason for this is a special hormone: the Antidiuretic Hormone, or ADH. This hormone significantly influences the body's water balance and ensures that we need to go to the bathroom much less frequently at night, as the body produces less urine.

Tips for Nighttime Diapering

When changing diapers at night, it's important to maintain a relaxed atmosphere and gently change your child to avoid unnecessary waking. For restful nights, consider these tips:

Proper Preparation

Have everything you need for diapering ready. For minimal effort and to avoid disturbing your baby's sleep, change them directly in bed.

For this, you'll need:

• Fresh cloth diapers + cloth diaper inserts/booster
• Change of clothes - In case of any accidents
• Reusable washcloths and warm water (e.g., from a thermos)
• Possibly a changing mat or towel

Relaxed Environment

Ensure a relaxed environment when changing diapers at night. If the sleepy mood is maintained, you and your baby can quickly fall back asleep.

Tips for relaxed nighttime diapering:

• Dim lighting → e.g., yellow light from a nightlight or salt lamp
• Quiet environment → speak as little as possible, skin contact and minimal movement are more important
• Warm environment → Ensure warm hands; maybe you have a portable heat lamp; you can also place diapers on the heater to warm them slightly

Suitable Clothing

To prepare well for nighttime diaper changing, it is also important not to disturb your baby unnecessarily when undressing. Ensure that the sleeping bag and pajamas can be easily opened from the bottom.

Also consider that choosing cloth diapers should make nighttime diapering as simple as possible. Pull-up diapers may be practical during the day, but at night, they save some time if your child doesn't have to completely slip out of the pajama legs or if you don't have to open and close all the buttons.

Photo by Dakota Corbin on Unsplash

Do Older Children Still Need to Be Changed at Night?

The older your child becomes, the more likely it is that you can forgo nighttime diaper changes. On one hand, the bladder of growing toddlers has a greater capacity, and on the other hand, the antidiuretic hormone ensures that the body produces less urine at night. Your child's sleep is less frequently disturbed by the urge to urinate, and the amount of urine can be well absorbed by the diaper. Often, the diaper remains dry until morning.

However, this is less clear with disposable diapers. Our study found that more than 15 percent of children who are diapered with disposable diapers are changed at night up to the age of 4 or longer. When cloth diapers are used, it is less than one percent of the children.

If your child sleeps through the night, you do not need to wake them to change the diaper. You can check the diaper once more before you go to sleep. If your child still wakes up regularly at night, this is a good time to check and potentially change the diaper.

In our blog, you will find out what to do when the diaper is full and your baby is sleeping.

Tips if the Cloth Diaper Leaks at Night

• Choose a cloth diaper one size larger
• Choose a bodysuit one size larger or use a body extender
• Switch cloth diaper brand/type
• Check the diaper once more before you go to bed and change it if necessary
• For tummy sleepers, place insert/booster further forward
• Use an additional insert/booster
• Re-lanolize wool covers
• Avoid moisture bridges → Inserts or diaper liners should not hang out of the cover
• For heavy wetters: use fast-absorbing inserts

Find out more in-depth information in our blog on what you can consider if diapers are leaking.

Becoming Dry at Night

How Long to Use Diapers at Night?

Even if your child is diaper-free during the day, it usually takes a bit longer at night. During the day, your child can actively respond to their signals, and even then, distractions might cause them to miss those signals. At night, the bladder must, so to speak, learn to signal the body to wake up when it needs to be emptied.

Most toddlers around the age of three begin to show signs that they can or want to do without the nighttime diaper. Until the age of 5, you can stay relaxed and give your child time.

Photo by Minnie Zhou on Unsplash

Practical Tips for Relaxed Nights

Often, becoming dry at night is a longer process and not completed within a few days. Especially for the transition phase, it can be helpful to keep the following tips in mind:

• Let your child go to the bathroom one more time before bed
• Encourage your child to drink enough during the day, so they don’t make up for it all in the evening – of course, do not deny your child drinks in the evening
• Cover your child's bed with a waterproof mattress protector or use a waterproof pad. This way, your child can sleep without a diaper, and the mattress stays protected.
• For a stress-free bed linen change at night, prepare the bed with two sheets and place a towel or waterproof pad in between—this way, you only need to remove the top sheet and towel/pad and have a fresh sheet underneath.
• Prepare a change of clothes so you can quickly and easily change your child if their clothes get wet

Find more information on weaning off the nighttime diaper in our blog.

I hope this article helped you in choosing the right cloth diaper for nights! If you have any more tips for nighttime diapering, feel free to share them in the comments!