Many mums would like to have a more green lifestyle, but often wonder how easy it will be. MumKnowsBest interviewed Susannah Marriott, author of Green Babycare (Made with Care Series by Dorling Kindersely) about how to become a Green Mum.

How difficult will it be to have a greener lifestyle?

You can make it as easy as seems right for you right now. There are many different ‛levels' of greenness. A ‛light' green choice might be to use fully biodegradable disposable nappies (such as Moltex). If you want to take it a stage further, you could try washable nappies - or have a nappy service deliver you fresh ones each week and take away the dirty ones to wash. Those few brave souls who aspire to be ‛deep' green might choose to use no nappies at all! That's a technique known as ‛elimination timing' - or catching it in a potty. It's entirely up to you how far you want to take green living.

Will it be hard to care for my baby in a green way?

I think it's actually easier, because often it means buying or doing less. For instance, for the first year don't use any products on your baby's skin - that means no baby lotions, shampoo or bath bubbles. Instead, just use plain warm water and organic olive oil - and a little gentle Castile soap occasionally. It's cheaper, better for your baby's skin (the barrier layer doesn't fully develop until after 12 months) and means you don't have to worry about all the man-made chemicals in high-street babycare products.

Can the efforts of one family make a difference to the environment as a whole?

I believe that we can make the world a greener place one family at a time. We hold the purse strings of the companies that are causing so much environmental destruction. By choosing to switch your home to a greener electricity tariff, for example, or favouring local shops and fairly-traded foods, you aid ‛greener' companies and starve those you disapprove of. Look what a difference individual mothers made by avoiding babyfood filled with added sugar, salt and thickeners: 70 percent of the babyfood on the shelves is now certified organic. Organic standards restrict additives and ‛processing aids' and the food is raised on farms that value biodiversity and avoid chemical fertilizers and pesticides - they have a smaller carbon footprint than non-organic farms, too.

With a young family and little time, what key changes should I make?

Some things are relatively effortless but have a huge impact if lots of us do it - such as changing your power supply to a green source (check out the options at www.greenelectricity.org) or buying baby clothes made from eco fabrics like bamboo and hemp (they don't need to be grown with pesticides, wear better than cotton and feel like silk). Thinking about the 6 Rs can streamline your life: Refuse (you don't need everything the baby magazines are touting), Reduce (the amount of stuff you buy and miles you drive), Reuse (washables mean you need never buy nappies again), Repair (only buy things you'll keep forever). And when you can't do any of the above, Recycle.

Will greener toys and clothes cost more?

Some do - but they hold their value on eBay! The greenest toys are the ones your child will play with for at least five years, such as Lego and Playmobil (both companies have impressive green policies and don't use gender-bending plasticizers in their products), or toys they'll want to pass on to their own children, such as Käthe Kruse's beautiful organic dolls. But some green toys cost nothing at all - what child doesn't love a huge cardboard box with a window and door cut in it? When they get bored, tear it up for the compost heap.

Having a baby or small children increases the amount of laundry and washing, how can our daily chores become more environmentally friendly?

To reduce your impact on the planet, turn the dial down to 30Àö, choose an eco washing powder, such as Ecover, or replace it altogether with eco balls. And hang clothes out to dry when you can rather than tumble-drying. You get extra eco points if you stop ironing, too!

For more information on becoming a Green Mum, read Susannah's book Green Babycare (www.dk.com)