Sister Lillian Remedies

I am so excited about this range! At last - some great holistic products especially for Mum and baby! With over thirty years’ experience as a highly respected nurse and midwife, Sister Lilian has become a household name synonymous with child and baby care. From her vision of a better world composed of healthy, contented babies that grow up into vibrantly healthy adults, the comprehensive “Sister Lilian Range of Remedies” was born. Consisting of twenty-seven specially-formulated products, the range comprises of the following categories: Care, Rescue, Single Remedy (Calendula, Chamomile and Arnica), Vitamins & Cough Syrup, and Tissue Salts for ideal mineral supplementation. The remedies can be used to assist with anxiety, aches and pains during pregnancy, labour coping during childbirth and maternal tension. They also help prevent or combat an array of ailments and conditions such as restless sleep, teething, colic, coughs, crying, digestive discomfort, earache, poor immunity, excessive mucus, skin rashes, bumps and bruises, sore throat and nausea.
“Colic occurs in twenty percent of babies”, says Sister Lilian, “... particularly firstborns, for instance if a baby cries uncontrollably for a couple of hours over a three day period, the child may be suffering from Colic. Often infants suffer severe pain and the soothing effects of a combination of homeopathy and tissues salts such as ColicCare may calm the child”, she adds.

Unlike conventional medicine, homeopathy treats the person and not the symptoms or disease. Given that the person (and body) is a balanced, intricate system, with levels disrupted by illness or “dis-ease”, homeopathy seeks to balance this through administered quantities of medicinal agents prepared from source materials. It’s a powerful means of self-medication that’s a by-product of modern thinking and living, focusing on nature and health as the core to any successful treatment and maintenance.

This is a really empowering brand of products that enables new mums to be able to manage their own and babies health in an effective and natural way...to get more information - please contact Andrea on 021 900 2510

Looking to reduce nappy costs?

Why are Bio-Babas the best value for money nappy around?

When looking for a good nappy system – very often cost is an incredibly important factor to consider, especially since nappies are the single biggest cost factor in bringing a baby into this world and may be equal to your hospital bill! In other words – if you go the full-on disposable nappy route, you are looking to spend around R12-R15 000 on nappies before your child is potty trained! (Even more if your child does not potty train at 2½ years as toddlers in disposables often do not associate weeing with being wet since they are always bone dry in a disposable because of the chemicals. We have many clients with 4 or 5 year olds who still wear night nappies because of this!). With a Complete Bio-Baba System you are looking at spending less than R5000 including laundry costs in that time…a R10 000 saving is not to be sniffed at!
Bio-Baba nappies are one of THE MOST economical of the cloth nappy options for the following reasons:
• they are the most versatile: ie. they can be used effectively for day,
night, swimming AND potty training - all other systems would require buying
more swim and training nappies... - the nappies still work at R153 each in a Complete System which includes a 20litre lidded bucket (R79), (Organic Nappy soak (R39) and a free South African Child Friendly Directory valued at R120 = total additional saving of R238
• once the hemp has been washed for a few times it is much more absorbent
than cotton and therefore you are only looking at changing the nappy 5 times
a day (same as a disposable)
• less changes mean less washing which means that you are only effectively
doing 3/4 more extra washes a week.
• we always receive comments from people using separates that they never have
enough waterproofs as even a little poo or wee on the waterproof means that
you need a new one...if you have only 3-5 waterproofs per system of a certain size then you are likely to run out - this is never the case with a Bio-Baba
• Fit Pregnancy said the Bio-Babas were the 'most convenient', 'easiest to
use' and one of the 'nicest looking' cloth nappies in South Africa...I think
that fact that they can be used as a garment in our lovely South African
weather goes a long way as they have a very durable outer (new
medium nappies will all be soft and baby pink and blue and white - large
still the durable fabric) - which means that they still look nice after
first baby has used them...this really can not be said of any other nappy.
• OSFA (one size fits all) are great - but I often feel that people are mislead into thinking that they will be suitable for all occassions from day one until potty
trained and they 'tick off' nappies in their brain, whereas in reality they
will probably not be able to use the OSFA until at least 6 weeks old due to
leaks on the small babies (not to mention explosive poos!) - which is why we
took our small nappy off the market as we often saw new parents struggle to
keep up with the routine at this stage and overwhelmed by it all...IN
THEORY - the OSFA seems a good idea for newborns - but in reality is not
often practical both from the effectiveness point of view and also from a
'can mum cope' point of view. I think that it is important that people do
realise this rather than think that you are getting less somehow because
Bio-Babas are only suitable from 6kg? Also - I know that not all OSFA are
suitable for potty training; from a size perspective they often do not fit
as well on the older children who do not respond as well to them, especially
since they are a nappy type nappy with outers and inners so not as easy and
cool to fit as an AIO and certainly do not look as groovy. (Important factor
in potty training!)
• Bio-Baba nappies all come with super-absorbent hemp boosters…these do all on the hard work of the nappy, so as well as getting the waterproof included in the price of your nappy, you will also be getting a hemp booster – a good deal!

Bio-Baba wins Green Innovation Award!

We are very proud to annouce that we have won the Real Simple Magazine's GREEN INNOVATION AWARD in the household category...it is especially meaningful in this category since many people STILL think that it is Okay to do the occassional bit of recycling and that disposable nappies are a necessary evil...this is absolutely not the case!

If you have a baby in your home, your household waste will double! By the time your baby has potty trained, he/she will created up to 1 tonne of landfill space and you will have left approx. 6000 little time-capsules of non-biodegradable poo-filled plastic for whoever is around 500 years from hence! It certainly won't be us if we continue to think that this is fine...parents who think it is not their responsibility to make sustainable choices for their children are ensuring that there is no future for their precious offspring.

Our planet can not sustain this amount of waste; there is an island of plastic floating around in the sea between Hawaai and Japan - I suppose since governments have run out of landspace and now just dump in the sea...Did you know that 90% of the world's oxygen comes from the ocean?

The time to act is NOW! Do not wait until baby is a toddler or potty trained and say "I was GOING to do the 'cloth thing' but never got around to it" - you will only have ensured that your child's eco-footprint is massive before they can make choices for themselves...will they thank us for not bothering I wonder?

Online Store Launch

A shift towards sustainable parenting?– a talk by Victoria Penfold, creator of the all-in-one eco-friendly nappy, on World Environment Day.

Since starting Bio-Baba nappies 5 years ago, I have been pleased to see radical shift in thinking towards the inclusion of cloth nappies in a nappy routine. Originally, when people discovered that they had to wash them, they simply where not interested and stopped listening to reasons why it was a good idea, citing lack of time or sheer disinterest in ‘ someone else’s problem’ as the basis for not wanting to go the ‘eco-route’.

However, that was before we had to pay for plastic bags, before the tsunami, before the ‘fuel crisis’, before the discovery of a mountain on plastic in the ocean that stretches form Hawaii to Japan:

“The vast expanse of debris – in effect the worlds largest rubbish dump – is held in place by swirling underwater currents. This drifting “soup” stretches from about 500 nautical miles off the Californian coast, across the northern Pacific, past Hawaii and almost as far as Japan.” (http://www.independent.co.uk)

Now people are finally waking up to the sad reality that there will not be a planet for their beloved children to inherit if they do not take the warnings seriously. After all, if learned people such as George Orwell are to be believed, “We humans are capable of convincing ourselves of something that is not true long after the accumulated evidence would convince any reasonable person that it’s wrong.”

So are South African parents really prepared to make a change? Do the rich and affluent still suffer from ‘affluenza’ – a sickness where you believe that because you are successful and can afford to buy and throw away as much as you like, environmental concerns have nothing to do with you?

Online Store Launch

FAQ

Many people know they want to use alternatives to disposables but are put off by the lack of practical information about exactly how to use them: how many they need, how often to wash them, what to do with a nappy bin etc.
I would like to give you a brief overview here; with the rest of the information downloadable from the web. All Bio-Baba nappies come with Swing Tickets with full fitting, washing & care instructions.

HOW MANY DO I NEED?
The short answer is “ at least 12 Bio-Baba nappies of each size” (Medium 6-9.5kg suitable from approx 3 months to a year….Large 10kg-16kg (suitable from approx a year to potty training). This means that you will have enough nappies to last you for 2 days, with some being washed whilst the others are being used.

WHAT DO I DO WITH SOILED NAPPIES
Bio-Baba’s have a handy ‘flip-out flap’ which allows you to hold the nappy whilst you flush the good stuff down the loo. Then put in the nappy bucket to soak as usual.
WHAT DO I USE TO DISINFECT THEM?
Do NOT use Steri-nappy or any other bleach based product…in addition to destroying the special breathable waterproofing, bleach is incredibly bad for the environment, as it kills all bacteria (good & bad) & life in the water system. We recommend using Bio-Baba Organic Nappy Steriliser (R39)…a really great product that uses the power of essential oils to disinfect the nappies or a few drops on tea tree oil in a lidded bucket. You can also use white vinegar, but this is a bit pongy!

WHAT DO I WASH THEM WITH?
Do not use any products containing bleach, petro-chemically derived soap products or strong detergents to wash your nappies as this will destroy the special waterproofing fabric and radically reduce their life-span. We recommend using an eco-friendly laundry gel or powder. (Eco-soft, Enchantrix Laundry Gel or Sunlight Baby) as they are mild enough not to irritate babies skin or do serious environmental damage.

HOW OFTEN DO I NEED TO WASH THEM?
We recommend changing your soaking solution at least every 2 days. What this means in practical terms is doing a ‘nappy wash’ Monday, Wednesday & Friday…if you have domestic help on these days – that’s an added bonus!

HOW LONG DO THEY TAKE TO DRY?
Bio-Baba nappies will line-dry on a reasonable drying day…if they are slightly damp or you want to take this chill off them, place them face down (cloth side) on a heated towel rail for 10 mins. Babies love having a nice warm nappy put on! (Nappies should NEVER be put next to an open flame or heater element)

CAN I USE BIO-BABAS AT NIGHT?
Bio-Baba nappies are EXCELLENT NIGHT NAPPIES. In order to get into using Bio-Baba’s 24/7 you simply fit the nappy as usual, folding the hemp pad into the ‘famous “V” fold’ AND insert an extra pad into the flip our flap. This will provide the extra absorbency needed to keep baby dry at night. 16kg babies sleep through in this system and even though they have a really wet nappy in the morning - the babies' skin is still dry!

CAN I USE BIO-BABAS AS A SWIM NAPPY?
Yes! These are great nappies for the beach and by the swimming pool…they do not get all hot and clammy like a disposable and come in such vibrant trendy colours that your baby will be the coolest baba in town! Do remember to remove the Hemp Booster Pad before going in the water though – we don’t want to absorb the whole pool!

BIO-BABA TROUBLESHOOT LEAKS
The most common problems associated with a leaking nappy are:

The nappy has been fitted too loosely: What I do is a ‘One leg at a time approach’. Place the nappy under the baby’s bum as per the “Fitting instructions” available on the web THEN, pull the elastic of the right leg straight up to 2 ‘o clock and close the right tab. Then, pull the elastic of the left hand side of the nappy straight up to 10 ‘o clock and then close the left tab. It is absolutely vital that there are NO GAPS underneath the legs after the ‘smart-fit’ tabs have been closed. Finally, check that all the flannel has been tucked in and that the edges are straight and comfortably protecting from the Velcro.
The nappy has been left on for too long: It is impossible to set a blanket recommendation for changing times as each child is different and poos and wees at different times with varying impressiveness! I really encourage mothers to become aware of their baby’s unique rhythm. That said, babies in the Medium nappies should happily stay dry for between 2-3hours in the day, and a little longer at night. Children in the Large nappies will need to be changed after they wee, (as they are doing much larger wees), and be encouraged to toilet train. The waterproofing on Bio-Baba nappies is NOT PVC which is designed to lock all wetness in, making for a very wet-skinned uncomfortable baby who will wake up and cry. We have used a breathable fabric to ensure that baby is as comfortable as possible and that you know when baby is due for a change (thereby avoiding nappy rashes). Once you get to grips with your baby’s rhythm, you will be able to pre-empt any dampness and change beforehand. Take note of when you put the nappy on.
Insertable hemp ‘Booster Pad’ has not been washed enough: The Bio-Baba nappy is designed specifically to wick moisture away from the baby’s skin with the hemp used in the removable ‘Booster Pad’ doing all the hard work of the nappy. If this pad has not been washed several times before use (AT LEAST twice), then it will not be operating at its full absorbency. Remember, the more your wash it, the more absorbent it becomes.

Another tip:

The hemp ‘Booster Pad’ is the backbone of the nappy…use it smartly. Where does your baby get the most wet? Usually boys wet higher up as their ‘equipment’ is higher than girls! Girls tend to wee straight downwards with great force, and boys might aim straight for your eye, so make sure the hose is pointing down when the nappy is fitted. You can give your nappy extra support by folding the ‘Booster Pad’ double in a “V” shape and placing it on-top of the ‘danger zone’ with the “V” protecting leaking at the edge of the nappy along the legs. Again, work with your own baby. If you do fold the pad double, ensure that you do not let it interfere with the fit of the nappy.
Then there is the question of the ‘Child Who Wees for Africa’
It's something you don't notice when a child is in disposables, but you certainly do once they are in real nappies. In my experience, however, most people think their child is a heavy wetter. Personally, I just think we don’t really appreciate the liquid in = liquid out equation while a child is in disposables.
Remember that wet nappies are a GOOD thing, in that they indicate that your child is well. The problem comes when the wetness turns into leaks.
Are they simply drinking too much? If you always provide juice, toddlers will frequently gulp it down and then ask for more, which will have the obvious effect on the bladder. As they approach toilet training they will no longer be doing lots of little wees which are easily absorbed, but will be doing occasional full wees. Any nappy, including a disposable, is going to be hard pushed to absorb these quickly enough if liquid intake is excessive. A good tip is to offer juice only at mealtimes, and to provide water at other times during the day: your child will drink if (s)he is thirsty but not for the sake of it. You will also be cutting down on your child’s sugar intake, which is a good thing, especially if you have a hyper child.
Keep in mind that you are using a cloth nappy that contains no chemicals to absorb urine and turn it into a non-biodegradable gel. You are using high quality fabrics that can be washed over and over. You have chosen to use a great nappy that is eco-friendly and much cheaper than disposable alternatives. Take the time to get the fit right and you won’t look back!
To Order please contact:
Vicki Penfold
021 761 8982
083 601 1145
sales@biobaba.co.za