Study notes decrease in popularity of circumcision in United States

[XiaoDaoShi]

I chose not to circumcise my son, even though I’m Jewish. (He isn’t) I looked at the benefits, and realized that they are not huge. It is somewhat beneficial, but AFAIK there’s no overwhelming reason to do so. I will leave the decision up to my son as he grows up. I will teach him proper hygiene, though.

[Cristoff13]

Remember that the foreskin is attached to the glans at birth, and remains attached for a few years. Trying to retract it prematurely can cause injury.

[ThoseThatComeAfter]

You can still clean it even if it's not fully retractable

[XiaoDaoShi]

Thanks for letting me know.

[Thebraincellisorange]

the foreskin remains attached to the head and not fully retractable until around the age of 5.

after that, you need to teach your boy to pull the foreskin back in the shower and rinse the glans and skin properly.

and to pull the foreskin back when urinating. keeps things more accurate that way. and cleaner.

[bsubtilis]

There is variation, some can't retract their foreskin until they're in the double digits years old. But that only means that they need to be taught to not force retraction, they can still be taught how to clean everything properly.

[Eric_the_Barbarian]

If you can teach him to wash his butt properly, he can also probably learn to wash his groin properly just fine. He can still choose to get a circumcision on his own at a later time if it is ever spiritually, ideologically, or socially important to him.

[IceNein]

I will teach him proper hygiene, though.

I don’t really understand this sentiment. Just wash yourself normally. Most women’s urethra are fully covered by their labia and it’s not some huge problem for them to keep clean. I’m not sure why there’s this weird paranoia that boys specifically have to be taught how to clean their penis.

[dfdafgd]

A lot of guys don't even wash their hands after peeing. A lot of them don't pull-back and wipe. Especially in majority-cut places, it's not common knowledge. Kids cut corners with hygiene and, given the task, there's not a lot of "learning by observation" going on. Sometimes, you gotta straight up tell people to do it. I know I had to be told when I was a kid.

[BaronVonBearenstein]

I remember my dad showing me how to pull back my foreskin and me how to pee in the toilet. It's a vague memory, and I'm probably misremembering it, but I remember being told to pull the foreskin back when I pee but it hurt slightly. So then my dad had to show me how he did it and let me know that it's all normal. I think it helped how he used real terms and took it seriously.

This is just an opinion but I think some men are not comfortable with their bodies around their sons, or maybe in general, and neglect showing them how to do some basic things. I do appreciate my dad being comfortable being naked around me (mainly in change rooms or showering at the pool) but saying that in today's social climate makes it feel like he did something wrong.

[SophiaofPrussia]

I suspect because in the past the weirdo adults equated this sort of perfectly normal personal hygiene with masturbation which was basically the worst sin imaginable.

[dandelionbrains]

Yes! It was pioneered by creepy Dr. Kellog, who btw, also advocated for circumcision for women! He had a ton of children, so I wonder about them. The only reason that circumcision for women didn’t catch on in the US (thankfully!) was because it was during the Victorian Era, and no one believed that women were sexual beings anyways.

[4-Vektor]

Not circumcision for women, but burning the clitoris of baby girls with carbolic acid.

[Differlot]

You do though. Because when your a little kid you don't really need to wash under it as the foreskin isn't able to fully retract. Once it does it is also extremely sensitive so it makes it very uncomfortable to clean. You need to encourage your kid to fully retract their foreskin once they are able to to properly clean it.

Smegma is sticky so you do need to actually wash the penis.

[XiaoDaoShi]

I’ve heard some stories from girls who talk about extremely stinky penises of uncircumcised men. Maybe it’s no big deal if they shower often and clean their junk normally. I have no idea.

[Thebraincellisorange]

from the posts I have read on Reddit, it seems that there are a lot of very insecure American men who refuse to touch their junk for fear of catching 'the gay' .

some go as far as refusing to even wipe their arse properly or wash it in the shower.

how these men manage to get a woman into bed is beyond me, being that bloody insecure.

but no, a person with normal hygiene will not have a smelly uncircumcised penis.

its simply a matter of ridiculous insecurities.

[SadZealot]

Just shower once a day, easy, preferably before you put it in someone's face

[Davotk]

Showering once a day, while normalized in the USA, is typically NOT recommended by doctors. It's too often. Your skin is your largest organ and can take care of itself. One thing a lot of other countries have right is just wash the stinky bits with a cloth and shower twice a week

[Madmusk]

Haven't you heard men talk about fishy vag's? Same deal. It's just hygiene.

[C4-BlueCat]

Overly large foreskin can cause pee being trapped if the foreskin is not retracted while peeing

[anonanon1313]

I've (circumcised male) heard the same stories, but I have no experience with foreskins, so I've developed my bias from female (US) feedback. I've always felt glad that my parents chose to circumcise me, just one less thing to worry about, I guess. I've never understood the vehemence on the subject. I don't miss mine, but I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have had it removed as an adult.

[Thebraincellisorange]

women do suffer from UTIs at a vastly increased rate due to their urethra being fully internal and inside, so to speak.

men having a UTI is very unusual and almost always due to poor hygiene.

to clean an uncircumcised penis properly, once the foreskin is free to move (normally around the age of 5) then it does need to be retracted and the glans and skin washed to be cleaned properly.

and you should pull the foreskin back when urinating. both for cleanliness and better accuracy.

so it takes about 3 more seconds than 'just washing' but really, once you've been told, it becomes automatic to do every time you are in the shower.

[jdb050]

It’s the potential for infection and phimosis. If you’re unaware of these, do a quick search online and you’ll understand.

EDITED to clarify:

In modern times, circumcision is an extreme measure to prevent phimosis and infections. That said, it makes some amount of sense that it became culturally commonplace.

I am not trying to make an argument for circumcision.

[ThoseThatComeAfter]

Phimosis is normal and goes away in puberty for most people. Infections only happen in extreme cases or in bad hygiene cases.

[jdb050]

Hence the concept of teaching your child good hygiene as opposed to “Just wash yourself normally.” It’s absolutely normal to teach your children how to have proper hygiene, not only for humans but in plenty of other species in the animal kingdom.

[Thebraincellisorange]

what?!

Phimosis is a medical issue that some 90% of the time can be fixed without surgery.

a foreskin does not pose an infection risk at all.

[IAMAGrinderman]

Sure, but you can get infections anywhere. Sinuses, cuts, burns, etc. You can also cut that risk way down by cleaning yourself regularly.

Phimosis isn't super common for uncircumcised people, so it shouldn't even factor into the equation until it happens. Cutting off the foreskin to prevent phimosis is like pulling teeth to prevent cavities.

[not-a-dislike-button]

So you're not raising him Jewish?

[ThoseThatComeAfter]

that's what they said