http://www.nola.com/family/index.ssf/2017/09/families_cant_afford_diapers.html

Updated on September 25, 2017 at 2:57 PM

A survey by Huggies in partnership with the National Diaper Bank Network finds one in three families in the United States struggles to afford diapers for their children, CBS News reports.

The report says the average cost of diapers for one child is $18 a week, or $936 a year. The cost is pushing some families to experience what the survey calls “diaper need” – the struggle to provide enough diapers to keep a baby or toddler clean, dry and healthy on a consistent basis.

Experts say keeping children in dirty diapers longer not only increases health risks, including urinary tract infections and diaper rash, but can also lead to emotional stress and depressive symptoms in parents stressed about not being able to provide for their children, the report says.

The report says the survey questioned parents in 1,000 U.S. households with young children, more than two-thirds of whom are married and employed.

Read the full CBS News report.