question re circumsision?

Question

I took my little boy in for his circumcision on Monday. No problems, he cried a bit but don't babies anyway and the nurse assured me it's pretty painless.

Anyway I was telling this to my sister this morning and said I shouldn't have done it and gave me all sorts of critisism, as if it's her business anyway . I thought it was necessary for hygene reasons later? At least that's what the hospital said.
Now I'm wondering if I did the right thing? It is routine isn't it
Anita

Answer 1

it's already been done, you can't change that, but if you have future sons...

No, its not necessary. The US is the only 1st world country that routinely cuts thier sons. It takes more effort for a female to properly clean her vulva and labia than it does for a man to clean under his foreskin. There are no real health benefits, no professional health organization reccomends it. The circ rates are falling in the US as well- only about 50% of newborns are being cut nationwide, in some areas the percentage is even lower. As for it being painless- how would you like to have someone take a knife to your genitals? It hurts. Alot of doctors still dont provide pain relief, those that do ussually dont provide adequte pain relief, and, whatever anesthesia they do use only last for the surgery, he gets nothing for the open would and raw skin in his diaper while it heals. Its a decision that is best left up to your son when he becomes a man. You can never UNDO a circumcision, but he is always free to make the choice later because it is HIS penis. And then he will be old enough to get adequate pain relief both during and after surgery, and the woulnd wont be exposed to his diaper all day. Don;t be mad at your sister, she obviously cares a great deal about your son (her nephew). You made a mistake once, but you needn't repeat it with future sons. -Neb

Answer 2

Um NO you did the wrong thing. But nothing you can do about it now, except educate yourself and protect future sons.

It is NOT routine.
- The USA is the last developed country doing it, mostly for reasons of tradition
- It is extremely uncommon in Europe (including England), Canada, Australia, some of those countries have even gone so far as to ban it for non-medical reasons
- Even in the USA, only 56% of babies are currently circumcised, so rates are dropping so far and it is not recommended by the AAP

Of course it hurt your baby, the anaesthetic (if any) is adequate, your baby was probably in terrible pain having the most sensitive part of their body ripped off, and will be for ages. Some babies don't cry because they go into shock. Nurses always say that, to make parents feel better.

The are no health or hygiene benefits. Some people say it's easier to wash and/or you have a lesser chance of getting some STDs, but everybody needs to shower daily and use condoms, so it makes no difference. Plus those claims have never been proven. The hospital was stupid to tell you otherwise. Some simple research online would prove this to you.

What a shame you didn't research this before hand. Hopefully you can realise the damage you've done and not just ignore the truth to make yourself feel better.

And to all those people saying it was your choice - actually it was your son's choice. Whose penis was it? Your son's. remember an uncircumcised man can get circumcised at any time (with the benefit of anaesthetic), but a circumcised man can't ever get his foreskin back (and many try - google NORM).

Answer 3

I totally agree with Harriet. This should have been your son's decision, not your sister's, not yours. But it's too late to do anything about it now. Just be sure that if you have another son, you don't make the same mistake again! The only reason for infant circumcision is to add to the doctor's income. It is definitely not routine, and it's not moral to mutilate someone else's body for your preference or your doctor's preference. Now that you know better, protect any future sons from this barbaric procedure; that's really all you can do.

Answer 4

You have all the information you need above, but I wanted to touch on the subject of pain.

About 70% of circumcision are done with nothing to numb the infant. Many believe that infants don't feel that much pain. There was a study done on the amount of pain an infant feels. To get to the meat & taters, they found that infants actually felt more pain than adult having this done as their nervous system is hyper-sensitive. This is why the AAP now recommends something to numb the pain.

For all the mothers who say, he was asleep when he returned from his circumcision, he was actually in shock.

Answer 5

It is a question. As a guy, if it had been left up to me, I would have chosen not to be circumcized. I understand that the practice is now pretty uncommon in Europe and the rest of the world, and that its only common in the US. Hygiene is the reason usually cited, I guess that might be true, but taking care of hygiene even in the natural state doesn't seem like it would be much of a problem--no more so than washing behind the ears for example. I have a sneaking suspiscion that the real reason its done is economic--its money for the doctors. One thing though, circumcision doesn't seem to have any long term negative effects on guys. I keep wondering who thought it up in the first place--what an absolutely weird thing to think up.

Answer 6

It's not routine in Canada anymore, and was never routine in Britain. This is a practice that is gradually dying out, and only done for religious reasons.

It's too late now, so no point worrying over it, but in future ALWAYS discuss things like this with a wide variety of people (e.g. here!) BEFORE you decide. It's your decision, nobody else's business, but you can only reach decisions you'll be comfortable with long-term if you have all the information you need to reach those decisions. It's all about research.

Answer 7

If the hospital said it was necessary, that's really bad on their part. They're supposed to be neutral on this, or at least give you all the risks in addition to the benefits.

I'm against infant circumcision. By leaving your son uncircumcised, if he's not satisfied with it he can always get cut and end up satisfied in the end. One survey found that about half of circumcised guys would have preferred to had made the decision themselves:
http://www.jackinworld.com/qow/q15.html

That may play a part into why circumcision rates have fallen so much. For example, circumcision rates were as high as 90% back in the 1960s and 1970s (that's partly why today's adults are so... brainwashed, I supposed you could say, about thinking that circumcision is better) but they have fallen to as low as 14% in some states. Here are the statistics:
http://www.cirp.org/library/statistics/USA/staterates2004/

The USA is the last developed nation doing it to a large number of newborns without religious or medical needs. (Europeans, Latin Americans, Japanese, and most Australians, Canadians, and Asians don't circumcise):
http://www.circumstitions.com/Maps.html

Christianity doesn't ask for circumcision, either. In fact, sections of the Bible are harsh against circumcision, and the Catholic Church even condemned the surgery:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circumcision_in_the_Bible#In_Christianity

So now there are many more uncircumcised boys. They don't get made fun of anymore due to that (I know, I'm one and I'm 18, a pre-med student).

In a medical study, it was found that females are more likely to hit orgasm with an uncircumcised man:
http://www.healthcentral.com/drdean/408/60750.html

The lubricated foreskin (on the inside... like your eyelids) slides up and down during sex and masturbation to stimulate the head (which is why you don't hear of uncircumcised guys needing lube to masturbate).
http://www.cirp.org/pages/anat/
http://net.indra.com/~shredder/intact/anatomy/index.html

Studies have found that circumcision reduces sensitivity (this article also mentions how it has lost popularity in the USA in recent times):
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,285532,00.html

And despite being more sensitive, uncircumcised guys still last in the same six minute range (average) that circumcised guys do:
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1743-6109.2005.00070.x

Makes masturbation more difficult:
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1464-410X.2006.06646.x

Which makes sense, that's how circumcision was promoted in the USA:
http://english.pravda.ru/science/health/27-03-2006/77873-circumcision-0

Increases erectile dysfunction rates:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=14979200&dopt=Abstract%7C

If too much skin is removed in circumcision, it can make the penis smaller since the penis needs some skin to expand during an erection:
http://drgreene.org/body.cfm?id=21&action=detail&ref=1125
http://www.altermd.com/Penis%20and%20Scrotal%20Surgery/buried_penis.htm.

There's pain involved, often why doctors don't want you in the room when it's done:
http://www.cnn.com/HEALTH/9712/23/circumcision.anesthetic/
http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/1f21e.htm
http://www.cirp.org/library/procedure/plastibell/

Of course, there are other risks associated, but those are typically the ones due to surgery. You can research it more here:
http://shorl.com/deprygyfrykiny
http://www.mothering.com/articles/new_baby/circumcision/against-circumcision.html

PS. As far as cleaning goes, it's really simple. For the first years in life the foreskin doesn't pull back. That prevents stuff like poo/fecal matter from touching the head. Later on all it takes it 5 to 10 seconds to pull the foreskin back and rub the head; it even feels good.
http://www.mothering.com/articles/new_baby/circumcision/protect-uncircson.html

Answer 8

The AAP recommends AGAINST circumcision being done as a routine procedure. It is considered an elective cosmetic procedure. It is not necessary.....no more necessary than chopping off a little girl's labia. You simply just teach little boys who are intact how to clean themselves properly.

Answer 9

It's not painless... it's not too bad either though. It's also not routine anymore. But, it's also none of your Sister's business if you had your son circumcised or not..

All in all it's a good idea to circumcise and I'm glad I live in a Country where we do it most the time.

Answer 10

It is a cultural thing more than anything. it use to be basic procedure, but reality is, there isn't much point to doing it other than for the look. Many other countries do not circumcise, and here in the US it's more of a choice than anything. I had my son done, only because there is a hygene risk, and you have to teach them to clean properly (and I don't know that I could trust a 6 year old to clean properly some day) and the MAIN reason is because my fiance is circumcised. I don't want my son to feel he is weird, different, or deformed, so I went ahead with it. Plus, I think it looks nicer.