Do you believe all the anti-circumcision info?

Question

I know this subject is hot button and those against it get pretty sensitive about things...

But my question is.. Do you believe all the anti-circumcision info?

I mean, if you can't provide *facts* to back up your claims without forwarding someone to a biased anti-circumcision website.. then how powerful is your anti-circ claim?

*I'm still waiting for Taylors "amazing" discovery to appear in A&P books"

(edited to add) Bravo to all so far who have answered. I like the thought provoking answers and its a breath of fresh air to see people on here being serious and not stupid like 99% of the answers around here.. ;) Keep it coming everyone!

Well this was a loverly thing until.. well you all understand... Especially the part about removing a foreskin equals removing a clitoris.. Maybe if the glans penis were to be removed that would be an equal trade off...

Answer 1

There isn't concrete evidence on either side if you want the truth.

I can tell you that I will have my sons circumcised though. There have been studies done on the partners of uncircumcised men and they suffer a higher incidence of infection - and worse - HPV (the virus known to cause cervical cancer). My pediatrician also supports circumcision because he cited evidence that it can decrease penile cancers and infections.

The other side of the debate states that the surgery is no longer necessary due to improvements in hygiene... But my ex was not circumcised and he hated that he wasn't! Growing up, despite good hygiene, he had instances where the skin would become so infected that he couldn't even pull it back to pee properly...

I say we should explore our own feelings - and do LOTS of research about such things and try not to judge others no matter what they decide!

Answer 2

No I do not believe in all of the anti-circumcision info.
There really is no advantage either way. Mostly, this is the parents personal choice, if the father is circumcised then the male children will be too. If the father is not then the children will most likely not be either.
Really the only thing to keep in mind if you go for no circumcision is that the foreskin needs to be pulled back slightly and the head of the penis cleaned, and frequently. If this is not done then the opening can close shut and can be quite painful for the child and may end up in a circumcision any way.

Answer 3

What facts do you want? I'm not sure why American women are all so afraid of the uncircumcised penis. It is no "uglier" or harder to clean than a woman's wrinkly labia folds. There is no need to "pull back your labia" and "scrub around down there with soap" so why would an uncircumcised man need to do that? All anyone needs is to take a shower and wash the outside parts with soap and rinse. That's IT. Most infections are caused from people messing with it and that includes women who douche and scrub too much, or take antibiotics that mess with the pH balance of the vagina. Leave your parts alone! They are self cleaning, they don't need a lot of maintenance!

I had never seen any uncircumcised penises when I was a teenager. Now that I'm a nurse who has worked years in postpartum, well baby nursery, medical-surgical at the VA, I've seen plenty and I've participated in lots of circumcisions.

My husband, sons and everyone in his family aren't circumcised, they are from a culture that does not circumcise. We've been married ten years and he's never had a single problem, nor have I. Plenty of parents in our area aren't circumcising and that's fine. I am not rabidly anti-circumsision, I support the choices my patient's make for their children but if they *ask* I do tell them I didn't circumcise my sons and they are fine and I don't think it's necessary.

Thank God there is nothing that doctors want to cut off to my reduce my chances of yeast infections and HPV. I'll just use a condom and Monistat, thanks. Maybe my labia has some extra skin on it and some might find it "ugly" but it's all mine, thanks, so I'll keep it!

Answer 4

I don't believe it. I've yet to meet anyone who was circumcised who was upset about it or had any adverse effects from being circumcised. I have, however, met several men who were uncircumcised who suffered with recurring UTIs, smegma build up (even though they were very clean guys and took care of themselves) and even one guy (just a friend) who complained about a constant odor he had. I really don't see what the big deal is. I'd like to know how many of these anti-circumcision people can speak from experience and say that they think un-circumcised is better. (For example, a man who wasn't cut, then ended up being circumcised as an adult.) All the anti-circ. people are usually un-circed themselves, so how do they know it's better??

Answer 5

Yeah I do believe all of the anti-circumcision info. My 6 month old son is not circumcised and neither is 85% of the worlds male population. I also feel strongly that people shouldn't make decisions about other peoples genitalia. You can justify it all you want but it doesn't make it right. And most people who get their sons circumcised do so because of either misinformation or because they're too worried about what other people are going to think about their sons penises (which is ridiculous, in my opinion).

I agree when people say it's a personal decision... the decision belongs to the person the penis is attached too! Wouldn't you be upset if someone cut off all of your external vaginal tissue because they thought "it's cleaner" that way and "looks nicer"??

Answer 6

Hi, We decided not to circ our little boy. I am an avid researcher when it comes to doing the healthiest things for my kids and according to the AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics) there is no medical justification for circumcising except for religious or aesthetic reasons. More and more parents are not doing it nowadays and relieving the stigma of the "locker room syndrome" so approximately 50% of kids out there aren't circ'd anymore.

Personally I also believe that if we were born that way, why physically remove a piece of the body when it was more than likely put there for a reason. In the end, your son can make the decision for himself when he's older as to what's right and 'feels' right for him.

Answer 7

I would look at all the arguments. Some do it for religious reasons, others so that baby will look like dad. I think those are valid reasons.

Some feel that their boy will feel weird, because all the other boys are circumcised. But I think in this county it is closer to 50/50 these days. Some also think that it's cleaner, but girls have WAY more going on "down there" and we teach them to be clean. Plus, what boy couldn't use an extra hygiene lesson.

My argument is that, he was born that way, why cut it off. Would you be willing to cut off your daughter's labia to be cleaner? Some countries do.

Really though, you should do what you feel. That way, if your son asks you why, you can back yourself up. You don't want to cut it off, because someone told you that you should or vise versa.

Answer 8

Any health-care provider will tell you that it makes little difference whether a man is circumcised or uncircumcised. The one little difference is that an uncircumcised penis might be more at risk for infection if kept unclean. I think that in current US culture that you'd really be doing your son a disservice to keep him uncircumcised. It is not the "norm" and I know many women, including myself, that think it's gross. I know a lot of men in Europe are uncircumcised, and I think they feel just fine about it.

Answer 9

I didn't believe anything. I was told that it was more hygenic to have a boy circumcised and that it would possibly decrease his chances of prostate cancer - but I didn't really consider that to be a huge factor. I was more about the cleanliness and what everyone else was doing - I didn't want him to be the only kid who wasn't - so that's why I decided to have it done. Kind of a lame reason, but that's what I chose.

Answer 10

Why? Why? Why do women say that circumcision of males is better than being in a natural, uncircumcised state? To remove a man's foreskin would be like a woman removing her clitoris - unneccessary and barbaric. Why some pople say that female circumcision is barbaric but yet they condone male circumcision of tiny, defenceless male babies is a mystery to me.

These days there are NO hygenic reasons for circumcision if you bathe at least once a day. There will therefore be no smell. Accusations otherwise are just born out of ignorance. If you consider most of European men, for instance, are uncircumcised, don't you think they would have moved to circumcision en masse long ago if circumcision was the most hygenic and correct thing to do? Europe is not medically backward. Circumcision is widely practiced in the USA but the numbers are diminishing every year as more and more parents realise that this is just a moneymaking scam by the medical profession and an unneccessary mutilation of their male child. All major US medical councils state that circumcision is an outdated procedure. And for those women that support circumcision because its 'cleaner', well, your vagina is going to be pretrty rank if you dont wash it every day either.

Almost all other reasons for circumcision are now medically treatable and therefore, circumcision is unneccessary.

For women, an intact penis is DESIGNED to work better that a circumcised one because the foreskin allows for greater movement during sexual intercourse and less lubrication is required.

A foreskin better for the man because his glans is soft and sensitive - the glans on circumcised penises gets thick and hard over the years and decreases sensitivity and can even lead to erection problems.

The natural penis may be more comfortable for the vagina than the circumcised penis. The coronal ridge of the natural penis is more flexible; liken it to the resiliency of Jell-O. The circumcised penile head is considerably harder--overly firm and compacted like an unripe tomato. This is because circumcision cuts away 33-50 percent of penile skin. As a result, the skin of the penile shaft can get stretched so tightly during an erection that it pulls down on the skin covering the glans, compressing the tissue of the penis head. The abnormally hardened coronal ridge can then be very uncomfortable to vaginal tissue during intercourse.

Women sometimes experience a scraping feeling with each outward stroke and even report discomfort after intercourse or even the next day. The brain makes pain-relieving endorphins that may partially block any discomfort during intercourse itself. Painful intercourse is a very common symptom in women, many of whom blame themselves or who feel that something is wrong with their sexual response.

The give of the natural penis, by contrast, allows for more bend and flex of the organ in the vagina, adding to a woman's pleasure and comfort. The abundant skin of the natural penile shaft further cushions the force of the coronal ridge in the vagina. In addition, the mobile skin of the penis is "grasped" by the ridges of the vaginal mucosa and held in place. The bunching and unbunching of penile skin during intercourse enhances a man's pleasure, but it also excites the woman.

Circumcised sex may cause the vagina to abnormally tense up and decrease its lubrication. Women report more problems with lubrication when having sex with circumcised men, possibly because of irritation from the harder tip and involuntary tensing against it, and also because the longer stroke length tends to remove lubrication from the vagina. Often an artificial lubricant is necessary.

Intercourse may also be painful for the circumcised man because his penis scrapes against the ribbed structure of tensed-up vaginal walls and becomes over stimulated from constant pressure. The degree of discomfort, if any, will depend upon the tightness of the man's shaft skin, the vigor of his thrusting, the duration of intercourse, and the amount of lubrication.

Circumcision may cause a man to work harder to achieve orgasm, resulting in emotional and physical distancing from his partner. When a circumcised man has sex, he may have to concentrate intensely on the erotic sensations he is receiving while simultaneously blocking out any uncomfortable sensations. Survey respondents often reported that their circumcised partners seemed to have to work too hard to achieve orgasm. And because of the erotic tissue that has been removed, he can't enjoy the sensations leading up to orgasm or his partner's responses.

Keep boys and men as nature intended them. Stop routine circumcision of baby boys.