The Pros and Cons of Circumcision

My son is, and we've had no problems.
We did it when he was born because if something does happen and it needs to be done later it's MUCH more painful and traumatic later.

ETA: Marla that is not how it is done.

I never considered not doing it. When I was carrying my oldest one of my friends told me about when he was a teen he got an infection and they had to do it because it closed up completly and it was so tramatic on him.

In my family of about 10 boys (I'm counting close cousins here too). 9 are circumcised. The 1 that isn't wasn't because his mom was just too frightened to get it done.

I had my son done so he would look like his dad who is also done.

My personal preference is circumcized but I'm married now and it is really a non issue.

Also getting my son done was a religious decision as well. It's not mandatory but it is a personal preference. It was done at the hospital and it healed quickly. He could honestly have cared less after all was done. The doctor did a great job and it wasn't any trouble to tend to and was healed in about a week or maybe two it's hard to remember exactly. My son's first month of life was tough on both of us, he had major digestive issues.

It's unnecessary and painful. It's removing healthy, functional tissue for cosmetic purposes. There are no good reasons to cause a child unnecessary pain.

It's his body, and should be his choice, IMO.

I have three boys with all the parts they were born with, and it has been a non-issue. From what I've read, the odds of a child ever needing to be circ'ed are less than a circ'ed child needing a surgical revision at some point. If you've ever encountered someone with a "high and tight" circ that didn't leave enough skin, you'd know that once it's gone, you can't get it back.

My guys are free to do whatever they want to their own bodies as adults. They can have their foreskins pierced, tattooed, amputated, whatever once they're on their own- as long as they don't tell me!

All of my sons are intact. So far, it's all good...

For each of my bio-sons, the docs did a happy dance when I declined and shared their thoughts on the procedure (all negative). I won't repeat them here - I don't want anyone to feel attacked. These *were* the docs who would have been paid to do it.

Here is a great source of (admittedly biased) information: http://www.drmomma.org/#uds-search-results

My son is whole and perfect the way God made him. Almost 2 and we have had no problems.
I also had a roomful of nurses and a Dr. do a happy dance when we declined the "procedure". Pretty good endorsement if you ask me. :)
HTH!

ETA: My link is not pulling up the exact page I was trying to link you to-but just type circumcision in the search box and you will get page after page of well researched articles. :)

I always assumed that if I had a son I would get him circumcised. That's just all that I knew growing up (boyfriends, friends, etc). Then when I was pregnant with my son, my husband told me he was opposed to it. He is circumcised but felt that he wished he wasn't - that his parents decided to take off a piece of him and it didn't feel right. I reluctantly agreed to hear him out and in the end he totally convinced me not to. For us, it was the right decision (but to each his own and I would never judge someone else). The risks (though slight) of infection and the pain of my poor little baby getting cut made me realize I didn't want this done. Though small, it wasn't worth the risk. We decided that as he gets older, he can decide on his own if he wants to have the procedure done. I am a little nervous about any teasing he may get in school, but I figure we'll just tell him why we decided not to do it and that it's up to him. I don't see how he could be mad about that and we'll support him if he wants to have it done. Here are a few articles my husband sent me to read about beforehand. Oh, my son is only 11 months so we don't have a lot of experience just yet but so far no problems. No UTI or any problems at all. But I look at my sweet boy and am so glad we left him as he came out naturally. But I'm sure everyone who gets it done (and has no problems) is glad too. good luck on whatever you decide!

http://sites.google.com/site/circresearch/

rates in the US as of 2004:
http://www.cirp.org/library/statistics/USA/staterates2004/

a doctors site with a circumcision FAQ (obviously as the site is 'doctors opposing circumcision' its a pro intact FAQ)
http://www.doctorsopposingcircumcision.org/DOC/faq.html

main site - http://www.doctorsopposingcircumcision.org/

Our son ins circumcised, no reason to and no reason not to. I actually left it up to my husband. Not because I was a afraid tell my son when he's older that I made the decision. But because I knew nothing of this procedure and the "aftermath".

My husband made the final decision knowing that I would support it either way. he decided to do it.

Our son has had no issues, is this because he has been circumcised? I don't know. Talk to a few different doctors get their feelings on it. You have plenty of time to research more. Sorry not a lot of help.

I had both of my sons done after hearing from a handful of people that their sons/nephews/friend's child had problems with not being circumcised. The biggest deciding factor was my husband. He was born prematurely, and by the time was old enough and stable enough, his mom didn't want to do it. He had constant yeast infections as a child. He was adamant that our boys have it done.

we did not do it for our son. There is no medical reason to. His Dr. even said if we wanted it done, to go to another dr. because he will not do it because even he does not believe in it. There is no reason to cut something off that should be there.
Also my husband is circumcised, and HE was the one who said to not do it (before I decided). My son did get a couple UTI's and we did see a urologist and he said to NOT do it and most boys grow out of getting UTI's around 1 year old. He hasn't had once since and he is almost 5 now.

Cleaning was super easy. I just left it alone. You are not supposed to pull the skin back or do anything to it because it can damage it and cause a lot of pain. I have never had to worry about cleaning it. I just wash him up like I would with any other part of him

Its a personal decision you and your husband have to decide. However, I always heard that the boy should "match" his father, if that helps. Good luck.

Easier to keep clean, and that's a biggy in my book.

I was sad when I had my son circumsized.
He was so tiny.
It was purely for esthetic reasons (to look like everyone else including dad) but they say that it is harder to keep clean if you don't circumsize.
I was worried abou that.

It was sad and hard for me.

In the long run am I glad I did it? I guess I'll find out when my son is a young man and I'll ask HIM if he's glad I did it. I'll paint the whole you-were-tiny & it hurt picture & let him tell me if he felt I did that right thing.

Considering our culture, I'm sure he will say yes then when I ask him.

I just felt it was barbaric when it was done.

Don't know if that will help your decision but I wanted to give you my pro's & con's.

I think they could do it a little more humanely (more pain meds & anethesia type thing but.......

It's kind of like when I see young baby girls with their ears pierced. All of my cousins had theirs done but I'm glad my mom waited & let me make the decision on my own to get them pierced. Because it hurt like hell & I was a pre-teen but have NO THRESHOLD FOR PAIN. ;)

I have two sons, both now teenagers, and we elected not to circumcise either of them. We, too, found no really convincing reasons to do it. On the other hand, there were plenty of reasons not to, first and foremost that I don't see the point of removing a natural and normal body part. Also, I don't believe it's right to permanently alter my child's body not knowing whether they will want it that way when they're old enough to form an opinion about it. I would no more pierce my infant's ears than I would circumcise my newborn son. (barring a medical reason of course). We taught them how to keep themselves properly clean and they've not had any problems. If it truly comes down to aesthetics, or some other reason, then my sons can opt to have it done themselves, if and when they ever want to. And as for that... I've had personal up close experience with both intact and circ'ed men, and in my opinion, there's no difference whatsoever. So if your son's future sex life is a concern, I wouldn't worry about it.

L.:

This is a very hot topic here and you will get a whole battery of answers. From both sides - some telling you to leave him natural. Others saying circumcise.

Bottom line? you need to do what you and your husband want to do. It's as simple as that.

Either way - the choice is YOURS. People can give you horror stories and people can tell you what they did.

Both of my boys are circumcised. They've not had ANY problems.

My girlfriend didn't have her son circumcised and he had problems - UTIs, yeast build up, etc. When he was 3 he had the circumcision done. Since then, he hasn't had any problems.

You need to talk to your husband and find out what HIS thoughts are. Is he circumcised? Does he want his son to look like him? Is there a religious reason for doing it? These are questions you need to ask yourself. Find out if your insurance covers it. Ask yourself why you want it done and why you wouldn't want it done. Get your husband's input. Talk with him. Ultimately, it's what you want.

Good luck.

There are many reasons for and against it. All valid.

For - lower rates of STDs and HIV, potentially lower rates of prostate cancer and potentially lower rates of HPV-cervical cancer in female partners (all correlative studies, not causal)

Against - unnecessary surgical procedure that permanently alters infant boy's body

It's a tough decision.

Well, if a Jew, which we aren't, it's Biblical and it keeps boys cleaner and they used to say less infection if done but don't know what they've come up with these days. I would do it but check it out further.

My husband is British and is not circumcised, but our son is. It was actually my husbands choice to do it and I agreed .We have no regrets at all. Our son didn't even cry when it was done. I know that everyone has their own opinions though and that's ok. You have to do what's in your heart and follow through with it.

I personally watched my second son's circumcission. They do use an anesthetic although I'm sure there was still some pain. The whole procedure just took a few minutes, and the baby was fine through the whole procedure. No problems, no issues. That said, whatever you decide for your son is fine. There are cleanliness issues involved with uncircumcised penises that can be overcome with frequent cleaning. I wouldn't worry about it one way or the other. Congrats on your new baby to be!

Here's some info on the medical benefits and risks of circumcision to help you make this important decision:
www.foxnews.com/health/2012/03/12/circumcision-linked-to-...
http://www.circinfo.net/pdfs/Guide_for_Parents-US.pdf
Congrats on your pregnancy! Nurse Midwife Mom of 3

I think it's beneficial to have it done. It promotes a healthier lifestyle, reduces the risks of stds and if your son will be living in America, then on a psychological level, it will be better too. You'll hear a lot of people argue against this, if they don't agree, but they're counting on a lot. An uncircumcised man or boy doesn't necessarily mean that he will have bacterial issues (that can be transferred to his partner, other than stds) and higher risk for stds, but they would have to practice great cleansing everyday. This may be difficult for many boys leading to these issues. Not only to mention that he may feel ostricized from being different from the majority of many males. Many males in America are circumcized and if you can get honest answers from uncircumcized men, it does create a psychological issue for them. They don't want to be different and looked at differently from sexual partners. I think it's funny how the majority opposing are women. Men don't remember the process and are healthier for it. The procedure is over quickly. I just think you should think of all aspects before you shoot it down. Congrats on the baby.

My husband is and so is our son. I asked my husband after the birth of our son and my husband was very firm in circumcision. He had no issues at all. I worked with a lady whose son was not and had to have the procedure done when he was 5. It is a matter of choice.

All the boys in my family are circumsized as well as my husband so there was never any question.
My baby didn't even cry when it was done.
He had no problems with healing, never had an infection of any kind.
He knows there's a difference after being in the locker room for swim team or gym at school. He says he would have been mad if we hadn't done it.
My little grandson was circumsized as well. That's what Dad wanted, that's what my daughter wanted, and all the nurses tried to talk them out of it.

I don't think parents shoud be pushed either way. It's a very private and fairly intimate decision.
We have no regrets for the way we do things in our family.
What you do is completely up to you.

Best wishes.

Do yourself a favor and google "circumcision video." The one that came up first for me, and it broke my heart that I did this to my son, was from video.google.com, and I literally made it through about 40 seconds before I had to stop watching. It's my biggest regret, and I can promise any future boys I may be blessed with that I will NEVER do this again!!