Marion Donovan was born in 1917 and died in 1998. As a inventor, she has received 20 patents for her inventions, which had delivered solutions to problems related to health, beauty and household. As an entrepreneur, she has taken the extra step to manufacture and market her invention of disposable diapers, which was enveloped with a shroud with skepticism when she introduced it initially.
Most importantly, her creation of disposable diaper now serves as a better alternative to cloth diapers, or baby rubber pants. While the latter constricts the baby skin which causes the baby to develop diaper rash, the disposable diaper which Marion created, called "boater" has a pouch for the diaper insert. This draws the soiled sections of the diaper away from the baby's skin, enabling it to breathe. At the same time, disposable diapers are secured by safety pins instead of metal and plastic snaps, which is another added advantage. Disposable diapers also saves parents the trouble of washing the soiled cloth diapers which wastes detergent and water.
Many of her inventions have benefited the society as a whole, but the disposable diapers had brought about a change in terms of convenience, health benefits, and comfort. It is a win-win situation for both parents and baby today, as parents will not be experience inconveniences of changing the diapers as soon as it becomes soiled, and the baby will be more comfortable in disposable diapers which locks the fluid away from his skin, with the pouch as mentioned above.
Later, disposable diapers revolutionized into adult diapers, which suited the needs of elderly who had urinary management problem.
For more information, check out these sites:
http://americanhistory.si.edu/archives/d8721.htm
