New research released this summer by the National Diaper Bank Network revealed the extent to which diaper need has increased in the United States in recent years.
The NDBN Diaper Check 2023: Diaper Insecurity among U.S. Children and Families found that 47% of families reported diaper need in 2023. This is a sharp increase from the approximately 33% in their first diaper need study in 2010.
25% of parents and caregivers experiencing diaper need reported missing work or school because they did not have enough diapers to utilize childcare and 28% reported that they had skipped meals in order to afford enough diapers for their child.
70% of the respondents reporting diaper need said that they felt stressed or anxious about their responsibilities as a parent/caregiver. 53% said they felt judged as a bad parent/caregiver because they could not afford diapers.
Locally, Mothers for Others has seen a 76% increase in new clients in the first six months of 2023 as compared to the previous year. Need has also grown among many of the local human service agencies who rely on Mothers for Others for their monthly supply of diapers.
“Families are feeling the impact of rising costs of both diapers and other household necessities,” said Karen Giannuzzi, president and founder of Mothers for Others. “Every week we have new clients reaching out for help with diapers. This increase in diaper need is happening in our own backyard.”
Mothers for Others was founded in 2011 by a group of mothers in Greenwich, Connecticut to provide support to families in need and has since become the largest independent diaper bank in Fairfield County. MFO distributed 275,000+ diapers in 2022.
Mothers for Others supports the well-being of low and limited income families by providing diapers for children from birth to three years old. It is the largest independent diaper bank in Fairfield County, and the only dedicated diaper bank serving the town of Greenwich. Mothers for Others works in partnership with Children’s Learning Centers in Stamford, Family Centers in Greenwich, the Greenwich Department of Human Services, Inspirica in Stamford, Kids in Crisis in Greenwich, Malta House in Norwalk, Person to Person in Darien, Jewish Family Services of Greenwich, the YWCA Greenwich and The Diaper Bank of Connecticut. To learn more, visit mothersforothers.org