How to Decide Whether to Circumcise

November 15, 2010

How to Decide Whether to Circumcise

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Hearing "It's a boy!" is a thrilling experience for parents who hoped to raise a son, but one of the first major decisions a mom and dad has to make is whether or not to circumcise their son. A San Francisco man wants to outlaw this practice because he believes it be genital mutilation. While the procedure is a common one when performed shortly after the boy's arrival, it can be more complicated if the parents choose to hold off until later in their son's life. It's a choice that shouldn't be made lightly so we've rounded up some issues to take into consideration.

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by POPSUGAR Moms 50

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50 Comments

Glare21 1 year

As someone who is studying to be part of the medical community, all of this information is ridiculously off. Any parent that truly cares to make an informed decision when it comes to cosmetic surgery for their baby, should watch this video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ceht-3xu84I Honestly, it's pretty said how misinformation continues to be spread within America about this procedure of altering infants, and I hope to be able to spread proper information with my child birth related services and education in the future.

2 years

There is NO reason to circumcise a boy. HIV prevention is just the latest bullshit. You don't remove tooth buds at birth to avoid cavities later do you. Reasons to mutilate your child: Stop masturbation Reduce STD Reduce urinary infections blah blah blah. Its all junk For the woman that CHOSE to mutilate her son, he was asleep. Remember 'get over it' as a solution for all the raped and abused women...just get over it....you ma'am are an idiot. I hope every child sues his parents. Maybe the next generation will use the intelligence god gave them instead of just doing it....hmmmm doctors made money, boy suffered, advantage=non. Judaism, muslims and americans...

2 years

I chose to have it done for my son. And he was asleep the whole time. It wasn't a big deal like you make it out to be. As for the young men who try to sue their parents for "mutilating" and ruining their sexual life. get over it

FrankiLee 2 years

I am so happy to see most of those who left comments are all for leaving males intact. I have no other research or anything else to input into this post that has already been said -- it's a needless operation, and why start out your son's life by undergoing a horrible procedure? I am an "intactivist!"

Candace11 3 years

As a former medical professional, I take seriously the rule of informed consent. Parents are not told the truth about what will happen to their little boy when he is circumcised. They don't know he is strapped down. They don't know the pain and the terror he goes through. It is neither gentle nor painless. It is no way to start a life. No wonder there is so much craziness and violence in the world. I did not know all the facts when my children were born. I wish I had. I did manage to convince all my children to become informed. Thanks to that, none of my 6 grandsons has suffered circumcision.

3 years

First slide of this article says: "It can be more complicated if the parents choose to hold off until later in their son's life." That's baloney. This article is written by an amateur with no medical background. If you don't circumcise your son in infancy, there will be no reason to do it "later in his life". The foreskin is to the penis as eyelids are to the eyes, and as lips are to the mouth. It's there for a reason. Leave it.

3 years

why the hell are the parents deciding how their son's penis looks??? that's sick. they don't choose the kid's hair color or eye color. they don't even choose the kid's haircut after he turns 18!!! it's not the parents' body, it shouldn't be their decision. they don't have to live with the loss of a body part for the rest of their lives. the only person who should make that decision is the person whose body it is. the foreskin is a normal part of a boy's body. we're all born with a prepuce, even girls have a prepuce! leave the damn baby's private parts alone!!! they don't belong to you!

MrsConnors 3 years

I am the proud mother of an uncircumcised son. He is almost 10 years old now, happy, healthy, brilliant and kind. In the early stages of my pregnancy I started reading about circumcision, along with all of the other things I would need to learn and know and consider as a first-time parent. All the men in my family, including my son's father, are circumcised. Eventually after giving them literature to read they came around and understood my decision. Why on earth would I have someone surgically remove my son's foreskin, where all those nerve endings are, when there is no proof at all that doing so has any purpose? The pain a newborn infant must endure? What a horrific welcome to the world. How could I consciously choose to have this horrible procedure done to this gorgeous brand-new boy who I carried for well over 9 months, caring for him as he grew, eating well, taking care of myself so he would have the best chance to be born healthy and strong? How? The day after his birth a nurse came in with a bed and said they were going to do a check-up and then "circ him." I was exhausted and half asleep, and connected to an IV. I froze, must have turned white as a ghost, and as they were wheeling him out JUMPED out of my bed and ran to the door yelling "NO!" The nurse stopped looked at me as if I was crazy, and I yelled, "He is a NO CIRC!!!!" They went back and looked at his chart, where that request was buried as a small checkbox 10 pages deep. She said, "Oh, sorry, they usually are, we just don't check that often." For real. Let my son grow up like most of the population of the boys in the world with his penis INTACT the way it was meant to be.

Certifiable 3 years

The statement that circumcision prevents anything is a myth. When circumcision first began in the medical community, in the early 1900s, it came about as a reaction to fear of an increasingly sexual society. The hospitals circumcised both male AND female infants. The female circumcision was called a clitiridectomy.. removal of the clitoris. To convince parents to allow the circumcisions, doctors claimed that circumcision cured ulcers, headaches, homosexuality, poor eyesight, and all sorts of wild things. HIV is just another one of those myths. Female circumcision has been outlawed, yet why are boys left unprotected from this brutality? It is quite strange how some people will do anything to their child just because they think "it's the in-thing to do". One day, maybe 50 years from now, Americans will look back at circumcision and see it as a crazy, medieval horror. As with many things in the past, people in the future will think, "How could they have been so stupid to cut off a part of a healthy baby over superstitions?"

DJorgenson 3 years

Circumcision does NOT reduce the transmission of HIV. It does NOT decrease the risk of any sexually transmitted disease. First of all, no reliable and unbiased studies have been produced on the topic. It needs to be made clear that just because someone has published a work claiming certain results, does not mean it the results are professional or legitimate. Secondly, just look at statistics! Only 5% of men in Europe are circumcised (the Jewish portion). Approximately 70% of men in the United States today are circumcised. Statistics also show that Europeans engage in TWICE as much sex as Americans. ...Yet, the rate of sexual transmitted diseases in the United States is significantly HIGHER than the rate in Europe. The European country with the highest rate of STD's is at 15%, while the United States is at 22%. In most European countries, the rate of HIV and AIDS is LESS THAN HALF the rate in the United States. If anything, the numbers show that circumcision INCREASES the rate of sexually transmitted diseases. The two most circumcised places in the world are the United States and Africa. Guess who has the highest rates of sexually transmitted diseases in the world? The United States and Africa! Use your common sense. This pro-circumcision webpage was obviously written by someone who wants desperately to justify circumcision, for reasons unknown. Also, be aware that Pop Sugar is blatantly pro-circumcision. You can see that by reading the other articles that they've posted on the subject.

3 years

Circumcision is disgusting. I suggest reading and understanding the things above (especially the part where the foreskin is fused to the glans); and then google "circumcision video" and WATCH IT BEING DONE. Still think it's a good idea?

CoryH 3 years

There is no reason to circumcise an infant. 1. Let's compare the risks: There is a 10% chance that the boy will develop a problem with his foreskin in his life. However, most foreskin problems can now be fixed easily and non-surgically. There is a 10% chance that the baby's circumcision will be botched and result in the loss of his penis or death. It's no contest for me. I would sooner risk an infection that can be cured by antibiotics, instead of risking my child's life. 2. The claim that circumcision prevents HIV and AIDS is false. The studies that claimed this were conducted in Africa, on men who were all intact. None of the men were circumcised in infancy, they were circumcised at the time of the study, and then not allowed to have sex for the six weeks that it took the wound to heal. Meanwhile, the uncircumcised men were told to have sex without condoms. The study was halted when researchers realized that the variable contributing to STDs was NOT the cut of the penis, but rather the women who contracted the viruses. The results were flawed. The study did NOT pass peer review. Anyway, infants and children are not going to be sexually active, so the argument that circumcision should be done to protect from STDs is ludicrous and illogical. 3. IF the male wants to be circumcised one day, he can have it done when he turns 18. Adult circumcision is less painful, less risky, easier to care for, and there is guaranteed anesthesia. Infants are more sensitive to pain than adults. Most doctors don't even numb the penis before they do it because the baby's screams don't bother them. The foreskin isn't loose at birth, like it is in older boys. It's attached to the glans (head) of the baby's penis. During infant circumcision, the foreskin must be torn away from the glans, which removes the majority of pleasurable nerve endings in the penis. The glans of a man who was circumcised in infancy are raw and desensitized (They lack the full potential for sexual pleasure that intact men have). However, the foreskin has separated from the glans on its own by adulthood, and very little sensitivity is lost in adult circumcision. There are also many adverse psychological effects that occur after infant circumcision. The infant's trust is damaged, his cries become more intense, his temperament and personality change, he becomes more aggressive and violent, and he becomes anxious and fearful of his surroundings. Those are only a few of the documented mental side effects of infant circumcision. Adult circumcision will not have these side effects, as the man is choosing the surgery and knows what to expect. 4. Circumcision is not a "quick snip". It's a surgery in which they strap the baby down and cut off a healthy, protective, and useful part of his penis. Circumcision is extremely painful. Even with anesthetic (which is rarely used) the pain cannot be entirely eliminated. The needle itself is very painful and must be shot into multiple areas of the baby's genital region--including straight into the head of the penis. A dorsal nerve block (the most commonly used anesthetic) only numbs the top of the penis. Once the doctor begins cutting the underside of the penis, the pain is felt full force. Circumcision involves crushing the foreskin with a cold metal clamp. Once the foreskin is crushed for a few minutes, the foreskin is cut away with surgical scissors and knives--slicing apart veins, nerves, and muscle tissue--for up to 15 minutes. Many babies go into shock from the intense pain and stop reacting, and then the doctor wrongly tells the parents that the baby has fallen asleep. 5. Circumcision does NOT keep the penis cleaner. An intact boy only has to pull back the foreskin and let the water run over the glans in order to keep himself clean. How clean a boy is, and how good he smells, depends only on his personal hygiene. If you can teach a girl how to clean herself, why can't you teach a boy? 6. The foreskin is not a birth defect. All males are born with it. It is a healthy part of the male body and has many important functions. The foreskin protects the head of the penis from infection, and abrasion from rubbing against clothing. The foreskin also lubricates the penis and enhances sexual pleasure for both the male AND the female. An intact penis penetrates and glides smoother, which is more comfortable for the female. Most females prefer intact (uncircumcised) partners. 7. The United States is the only country left that continues regular circumcision in hospitals. Other countries, such as Canada and Australia have discontinued the practice in their hospitals because the surgery is severely damaging to the infant and has no benefits. Most parents today are NOT having their boys circumcised. Statistics show that by 2050, most males in the USA will be UNcut (uncircumcised), and circumcised males will be outnumbered.

3 years

In consideration of ethics, it is the boy's decision, not his parents'. An infant cannot give his consent to be circumcised. Most men grow up to hate the fact that their parents chose to circumcise them, once they find out that they have lost the majority of nerve endings that enhance their sexual pleasure. You do not choose your son's hair color, his eye color, his career, or even his hair cut as an adult. Why do parents feel that it is okay to choose to have a useful and pleasurable part of their son's body cut off? It's HIS body, HIS rights. If you would not do it to a girl, why do it to a boy? In this country, a newborn girl has more rights at birth than a newborn boy. It is a very sad and unethical state. 85% of males in the world are uncircumcised. Both Canada and Australia put a stop to infant circumcision years ago. The majority of circumcision in the world is done in the United States. 90% of infants were circumcised in the 1970s. By 2004, that declined to 54%, and is still steadily decreasing as doctors and parents are becoming more informed. We need to evolve and get rid of this needless practice. Our culture is above this now, and that is being proven as circumcision rates continue to fall drastically.

3 years

Circumcision is not only physically damaging, but psychologically harmful as well. Modern science reveals that the infant is developing his personality and opinions of the world while he is still in the womb. Upon birth, the infant is fully participating and aware of what is going on around him, absorbing all of the events in his subconscious. Being strapped down and having his most sensitive body part cut up makes the infant feel unprotected, helpless, and fearful of the world. These effects do not go away. They have been shown to exist in the subconscious throughout life. Studies have found that infant circumcision is so traumatic that it changes the infant's temperament from that very moment. There is much documentation of mothers noticing that their sons have changed after the circumcision. Sleep patterns are more interrupted, activity level changes, irritability increases, and mother-infant interaction becomes more difficult. Most boys will not feed for 24 hours after their circumcision, and when they do, most will not look at the mother. Long-term studies show that men circumcised in infancy develop the same personality characteristics and behavioral patterns. Boys and men who were circumcised as babies are generally more aggressive, violent, irritable, and fearful of their surroundings. They feel less in control of what happens to them and are more likely to struggle with addictions. Many circumcised males also feel less masculine, develop trust issues, and have trouble communicating, which often results in failed relationships. They also have a lower pain tolerance than uncircumcised males and females do, as well as higher rates of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. These effects last through infancy, childhood, and throughout their adult lives. Lastly, in consideration of ethics, it is the boy's decision, not his parents'. An infant cannot give his consent to be circumcised. Most men grow up to hate the fact that their parents chose to circumcise them, once they find out that they have lost the majority of nerve endings that enhance their sexual pleasure. You do not choose your son's hair color, his eye color, his career, or even his hair cut as an adult. Why do parents feel that it is okay to choose to have a useful and pleasurable part of their son's body cut off? It's HIS body, HIS rights. If you would not do it to a girl, why do it to a boy? In this country, a newborn girl has more rights at birth than a newborn boy. It is a very sad and unethical state. 85% of males in the world are uncircumcised. Both Canada and Australia put a stop to infant circumcision years ago. The majority of circumcision in the world is done in the United States. 90% of infants were circumcised in the 1970s. By 2004, that declined to 54%, and is still steadily decreasing as doctors and parents are becoming more informed. We need to evolve and get rid of this needless practice. Our culture is above this now, and that is being proven as circumcision rates continue to fall drastically.

3 years

The author of this article seems to be unaware of that fact that circumcision is completely unnecessary and extraordinarily painful. Circumcision has NO medical benefits. The AAP calls circumcision "non-therapeutic", and rates the pain experienced during circumcision as "severe and persistent". At birth, the foreskin is fused to the glans of the penis, the same way that your fingernail is attached to your finger. Ripping the foreskin from the glans is the first painful step in the operation. This tears away 20,000 nerve endings from the glans, which removes 70% of feeling in the penis for the rest of the boy's life. Then, all the cutting and slicing happens--for up to 15 minutes in many hospitals. Despite old myths that babies can't feel pain, it is now common knowledge that infants are MORE SENSITIVE to pain than adults. Yet, many doctors in the United States still do not use anesthetic during circumcision. Many boys choke and develop hernias from screaming for so long. The pain experienced for the 7-10 days after the circumcision is also excruciating. For those 7-10 days, the baby is urinating and defecating into the open wound. A circumcised baby has a higher risk of infection, disease, and the loss of his penis than an intact baby. 1 out of every 100 boys has a botched circumcision. Hundreds of boys each year die from circumcisions gone wrong. There is no arguing that can be done in defense of circumcision.

3 years

The foreskin contains the same amount of nerve endings as the clitoris does. Thus, removing the clitoris IS the same as removing the foreskin. There is no difference between female and male circumcision when it comes to the pain suffered and the damage inflicted.

3 years

@jaan_black -- Soooo, you want to circumcise your son so YOU can be attracted to his penis??

jaan_black 3 years

I think circumcised penises are way better looking, I've seen both...If I have a son one day, you better believe he's getting snipped

3 years

The more things change, the more they be left the same.

3 years

Happiness is something sure and unabridged in itself, as being the aim and close of all applied activities whatever .... Cheer then we state as the active worry of the object to in conformity with best goodness or virtue.

3 years

Thankyou, MissSushi. In retrospect, I should have at least given myself a name besides "Anonymous" :S lol

3 years

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MissSushi 3 years

excellent comment, anon.

3 years

@TammyO -- I'm sorry for the traumatic experience your husband had to endure as a child. Unfortunately, his experience was also likely due to a lack of knowledge on the part of his doctor. In most cases, tight foreskin problems can be remedied non-surgically. For those who need it, I recommend Googling "tight foreskin" for information on how to try to treat this problem safely, before doing surgical intervention.

3 years

I post this comment as an "anonymous" user, simply because I do not wish to register with the site at this time; NOT because my information isn't valid. I would also like to mention that I'm coming to you as a mother who believed this kind of garbage, and my first son suffered under a knife because of it, for no reason whatsoever aside from my own ignorance, lack of proper information and lack of understanding. I agree that this article is biased. It also neglects to expand on the pro-circ blurbs included throughout the article. For example, to include that it reduces the risk of HIV transmission, but not expanding on that whatsoever. That study was not done right, little detail was released, then the media ran rampant with it. (For a good detailed understanding of this, I recommend getting ahold of a copy of the July-August 2008 Mothering Magazine. The article on this subject is written like a research paper, and includes all the source info on which the article is based.) And when it comes to religion, many people really don't even know much more than "it's part of my religion" (in most cases, it's not even!), but they're really just going along with what they're familiar with (Google search "jewish against circumcision" and "catholic against circumcision" for websites with exceptional details on this subject). The article also lacks information about the purpose of the foreskin, and it's necessary to put the function of the foreskin into the spotlight. It's like tonsils -- back in our grandparents time, tonsils were removed for no really good reason, because it was assumed that they didn't have a purpose. It was later discovered that the tonsils are filters, and keep bacteria out of the body. The foreskin has purpose too, a purpose that is actually very beneficial to both the male and his partner. I strongly recommend doing a Google search for "function of the foreskin" and get an understanding of it's purpose. To address another standard issue: "his father is circumcised" ...and... "I'm leaving it up to his father, since he's the one with a penis and would know" ...and... "I find uncircumcised men to be gross". Firstly, just because his father was forcibly disfigured, doesn't mean it should be done to his son. Secondly, his father wouldn't remember having it done (I hope!!). Finally, it is best to not let your own preference for circumcised men, or your own lack of a penis affect you here. You will find that your preferences for your partners penis type will differ greatly from how you view your intact son. My second son is intact, and that's how I'm used to seeing him. It's far less intimidating to leave him intact when you have an understanding of it all. It won't be weird, it will be normal for him, for you, for his future partners. This article also lacks an explanation on the proper care of a normal penis, including the understanding that you do NOT under ANY circumstances, retract the foreskin. Period. You clean a normal penis like a finger, and the boy will retract the foreskin on his own when he's ready. It's very important to understand that retracting the foreskin before it's ready rips it away from the glans (the head), which is attached to protect the penis; that it hurts like pulling the nail away from the nail bed; and that the foreskin may fuse back improperly, increasing his risk of having to be circumcised in the future. (and don't worry, a child won't do that kind of damage to himself because it would hurt him too much, but an adult could easily do it to him; so protect him!!) This is far too serious a topic to create a small article about it, whether your blurbs are pro- or anti-circumcision. There are so many lies, so much misunderstanding, and too many close-minded people who are just looking for a reason to nod along or be validated in "their" decision. So, lets say this -- circumcision should only be done in extreme cases of necessity (that are serious like having to amputate your index finger). Unless something like gangrene is involved, you should be allowed the time to research the reasons if you're told that your son needs a circumcision in the future. If it turns out to be medically necessary in the future (unlikely, especially if you follow the proper care guideline I laid out above); it should be done like any other surgical procedure -- the boy should be put under anesthetic, and have proper medical care and pain medications thereafter. I'm pained at the thought of how many helpless infants were subjected to this torture because of the lack of information like the above. And to say something like "he won't remember it later", doesn't mean he should be subjected to that kind of pain and trauma now!!