1 Sam 17:26
”Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?"
Apparently the debate for and against circumcision rages on. Too bad most of us didn’t get the chance to formulate an opinion on the subject before it was too late. That is unless you were not cut. Then as an uncut adult you could get the procedure done on your own free will. There are ethical implications either way. There is an AP story out today that addresses research regarding the health benefits of getting the little fella trimmed. The article covers a case study in India showing that circumcised men have a decreased chance of contracting HIV. The disease has less skin cells to attach to in men who have had the procedure.
Of course the roots of this procedure began in the Victorian Era when it was a punishment for masturbation. Primarily it was done to “kill the fun” of self-gratification. With a decrease in sensitivity it was though little boys would refrain from the pastime. It didn’t take long for circumcision to be credited for curing everything from epilepsy to poor eyesight. After the Cold War the procedure then became the norm and it was done on most babies here in the US.
Worldwide 10-15 percent of men are circumcised and the vast majority of them are Muslim. In Europe and South America the practice is almost non-existent. In the U.S. children are not put under sedation during the procedure and most slip into a coma like state after it is done. Sometimes this recovery period lasts weeks and can be hard on parents since what they’ve done so clearly hurt their child.
Aside from the new HIV study I wanted to find out if there are any other medical benefits to the procedure. I don’t want to clean my son’s genitals until he is in middle school. Of course being a parent requires many unpleasant sacrifices. I was once a little boy and I know we aren’t always the cleanest of people so I can imagine a child who isn’t circumcised runs the risk of having all kinds of bacterial infections not to mention just being dirty. My inner puritan tells me there must be benefits.
It turns out the benefits are mixed at best. Circumcised children have a lower risk of urinary tract infections, but only in the first years of life. Penile cancer affects 1 in 100,000 males (and ironically 0 females). While circumcision is thought to decrease the risk, penile cancer isn’t the most dreaded disease going these days. While there are benefits to circumcision there are plenty of dangers such as bleeding, infection, and scarring.
If I had a son tomorrow it would hard to decide if circumcision is right. While the procedure would be a non-existent memory when a child grows up, as a parent you would be making a permanent decision for your child that he has no say in. It is the job of a parent to do what is best for their child. In this case there does not appear to be any logical argument for the procedure other than myths about cleanliness and our own reluctance to teach little boys about proper hygiene.
”Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?"
Apparently the debate for and against circumcision rages on. Too bad most of us didn’t get the chance to formulate an opinion on the subject before it was too late. That is unless you were not cut. Then as an uncut adult you could get the procedure done on your own free will. There are ethical implications either way. There is an AP story out today that addresses research regarding the health benefits of getting the little fella trimmed. The article covers a case study in India showing that circumcised men have a decreased chance of contracting HIV. The disease has less skin cells to attach to in men who have had the procedure.
Of course the roots of this procedure began in the Victorian Era when it was a punishment for masturbation. Primarily it was done to “kill the fun” of self-gratification. With a decrease in sensitivity it was though little boys would refrain from the pastime. It didn’t take long for circumcision to be credited for curing everything from epilepsy to poor eyesight. After the Cold War the procedure then became the norm and it was done on most babies here in the US.
Worldwide 10-15 percent of men are circumcised and the vast majority of them are Muslim. In Europe and South America the practice is almost non-existent. In the U.S. children are not put under sedation during the procedure and most slip into a coma like state after it is done. Sometimes this recovery period lasts weeks and can be hard on parents since what they’ve done so clearly hurt their child.
Aside from the new HIV study I wanted to find out if there are any other medical benefits to the procedure. I don’t want to clean my son’s genitals until he is in middle school. Of course being a parent requires many unpleasant sacrifices. I was once a little boy and I know we aren’t always the cleanest of people so I can imagine a child who isn’t circumcised runs the risk of having all kinds of bacterial infections not to mention just being dirty. My inner puritan tells me there must be benefits.
It turns out the benefits are mixed at best. Circumcised children have a lower risk of urinary tract infections, but only in the first years of life. Penile cancer affects 1 in 100,000 males (and ironically 0 females). While circumcision is thought to decrease the risk, penile cancer isn’t the most dreaded disease going these days. While there are benefits to circumcision there are plenty of dangers such as bleeding, infection, and scarring.
If I had a son tomorrow it would hard to decide if circumcision is right. While the procedure would be a non-existent memory when a child grows up, as a parent you would be making a permanent decision for your child that he has no say in. It is the job of a parent to do what is best for their child. In this case there does not appear to be any logical argument for the procedure other than myths about cleanliness and our own reluctance to teach little boys about proper hygiene.
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