Why Can'T They Make An Absorbent Pullup?

[Knom]

Thanks for the info messymike.. I've been wanting to try abri-flex pullups.. but I can never find reviews on it.. Everyone just goes for the X-Plus and stops there.. I've tried Depends, Tena and Tranquility pullups and have had leaking in all of them. (WAY more in the depends - but we all know they suck and are evil any way) So I really want to order a pack of those.

[cushytoosh]

Believe it or not, there are a whole lot of talented and experienced professionals working in the R&D and marketing departments of all the leading disposable manufacturers.

Several years ago I was actually paying well respected consultants to the baby disposable industry because I was willing to invest in the production of baby disposables large enough to effectively fit people up to 5' tall, 95 pounds and with 26" hips. My reasoning was such products, perhaps designated Size 7 (that was before Pampers marketed Cruisers in that size) Size 8 and Size 9, would bridge the gap between standard Size 6 and Attends Youth Briefs or Attends Breathable Small.

As I listened to those consultants I learned several established brands were developing those exact sizes, but only using cloth-like covers and hook & loop fasteners. The manufacturers had already found that cloth-like combined with H&L fastening tabs vastly increases shelf life of disposables while reducing shipping damage. They were very interested in those larger disposable diapers because at that time they were having so many production problems making pull-ups.

Subsequently several major manufacturers did largely solve the pull-up production problem by improving the machinery and reducing the percentage of fluff by increasing the percentage of SAP.

From a practical standpoint the limit on the capacity of any diaper be that actual cloth, cloth-like or poly-plastic is comfort when wet and ability to stay in place. Unfortunately as infants grow into toddlers, then older kids, their body types and proportions vary a great deal. The easiest body type to fit into a diaper has hips larger than a fairly low waist. On such a body there is a place above the hips where the top of the diaper can cinch-in. Making use of this is easier with a non-pull-up, since the waist H&L tab can be pulled really snug.

As people grow from toddlers to juveniles to adults, body-types vary even more. Most adult pull-on disposable undies use an extra-high waist with several inches of stretch material above the absorbent core. Still there is a limit to the weight of the wet core such stretchy material can hold. Market research has concluded that the majority of incontinent people do not need excessive capacity because they prefer to change disposable undies or briefs before urine turns stale or the garment slips down.

In the baby diaper industry Market Research clearly showed that parents had less than no interest in teaching larger kids how to put on their own diapers. It is interesting that outside the USA and Western Europe, parents of larger kids were far more open to buying really big baby disposable diapers. Read the topics about brands not marketed in the USA for kids up to 95 pounds.

The challenge to those of us trying to help parents of kids with delayed toilet learning is that there is no shelf space available in most stores for such specialized products. If P&G cannot hold onto shelf space for Size 7 Cruisers, why would KCWW attempt to market Size 8 and 9? Those already exist and are daily being made on modern machines all over the world, in many of the same factories already producing the diapers and pull-ups being sold by P&G and KCWW. Printing different outer bags for the USA market is not a problem. If there actually are customers, such diapers will be imported. So far no research shows this will be a sensible business venture.

The same thinking holds in the adult incontinence industry. Retail customers prefer pull-on for the convenience and most do not void huge amounts. Those incontinent adults who do void a lot are happy with tape-on briefs. In my case I do not wear pull-on because I need to undress less to change a tape-on than a pull-on. With H&L I have the option of releasing my diaper to use a toilet if I get the chance, then re-fasten that same diaper. I could pull-down a pull-on but could not easily change it if it did get soaked. Trust me, the R&D and Marketing professionals have interviewed enough potential customers they make informed business decisions.

Unfortunately for the AB/DL community usually the adult products are designed to be as non-babyish as possible.

Do you think cloth diapers out there could be improved as far as functionality? I'd love to hear what you have to say. Email me at cushytoosh@yahoo.com Thanks! Susie

[Loveable_guy]

The Abena flex are about the best pull up brief I have found. Expensive but good. The Tranquility Overnight look good but I’ve had nothing but leaks with these.

Not to be confused with the Tranquility ATN that are a super diaper for the money.

The key to getting the maximum out of a diaper is slowly wetting just like a incontinent person would use a product. Flooding is a difficult thing to hold.

[enfant]

It probably depends on the individual shape of the person wearing them, but I found the Tranquility Overnights to be quite good, and didn't have any more trouble with leaks than one would expect.

[Knom]

I have tried the Tranquility Overnights and I get the occasional leaker.. Same with Tena's Ultimate absorbent underwear. That's why I have been trying to find some abri-flex to try out and see if they truly don't leak on their side etc. By the sounds of what Mike is saying you don't really have to hold back on them either, unlike the afore mentioned products.