A question for uncircumcised men! (or men circumcised later in life)?!


Question: A question for uncircumcised men! (or men circumcised later in life)?
A question for uncircumcised men! (or men circumcised later in life)?
Hi there!
I am attempting to post this in the UK & Ireland forums, but I am American. I have run into an interesting issue and could use some foreign aid!
My husband and I are having a baby, and while we don't know the gender, we do know that if its a boy we do not want him circumcised. In America, circumcision is usually performed right after birth on the majority of infant boys. Friends/family keep telling me that I am setting my kid up for infections, foreskin tears, odors, and teasing for his natural appearance. They insist that circumcision is safer and more hygienic.

So, is this true?

Now, while I personally don't care about appearance, I am curious; do men in a country where circumcision is NOT the typical choice really have so many problems? Do you wish your parents HAD circumcised you? I apologise for this very personal question, but I think all these "infection" threats may be an over exaggeration of what is an uncommon problem. I would rather leave my son intact if it is not really going to lead to endless infections and tears.

Answers:

no, ive never had any of those problems, and knowing other "intact" guys, ive never heard of any problems either.

its not like an intact foreskin is an open wound... its just a mucous gland essentially. it doesnt get infected, and it doesnt get torn, and ive definitely never been teased before because of it (lol).

i think that circumcision is a bad idea. one bad circumcision can be a life long issue. a short circumcision can cause the skin to stretch uncomfortably when erect. also, the mucous glands adapt and become dysfunctional, the body covers them with a hard substance (cant remember the exact name of it... it might actually be keratin know that i think about it) and your penis actually becomes less sensitive. the penis also becomes less sensitive because of direct contact and rubbing of the head against undergarments and your hand while masturbating.

of course, if you do encounter horrible endless problems and emotional scarring because other dudes are making fun of you, you COULD always just get it cut later on. i dont know why other guys would be teasing you though.

there are quite a few guys on here that preach about how great there foreskin is regularly, and i think they might embellish some things about how great it is. i do enjoy my foreskin though.

of course, ive researched quite a bit on circumcision, and even delved into a couple books that say its a conspiracy that has to do with aliens from a distant planet (pretty extreme ideas), but i pretty muched summed up the important parts for you.

also, i ran across a website once (it might have been called jacks penis world?) and it had a bunch of statistics in it, mostly to do with average penis size, average masturbation among age groups, average sex among age groups, and various other polls that lots of the time included a separate result for both circumcised and intact men. one of the results that i found interesting is that "intact" men have more regular sex by a large margin over circumcised men. obviously mother nature is doing something right, if that is true.

add any additional info and ill check back later if you have more Qs.



I am a cavalier and not a round head, I can pull my skin right back with no problems, which means I can thoroughly clean it. If you have a boy, while he is a baby, gently pull back his foreskin a bit at a time every time you bath him, eventually it will slip back without a problem, if it didn't after 6 months or so, see your Dr. (not a jewish one!!), he was born with it, let him keep it!



I was circumcised at 18 and am pro circ. However, I do not deem it necessary as long as proper hygiene is maintained barring any medical condition requiring it later in life.

Edit: In terms of later in life circ's they aren't that painful. I was off pain meds the afternoon after.



Please don't do that to your son...it's barbaric and uneccessary and can cause a LOT of problems.

I was circumsized and can't even DESCRIBE the problems it's caused in my life.

Just say no. Please. Let him decide what he does with his body. Things can go wrong during circumcision. Just don't do it. Love and respect your son.



That is bull. If you have the parenting skills to tell your child to keep is parts clean then you have nothing to worry about. Also the HIV Aids does not make your chances if you are uncircumsized. Don't cut off your childs manhood!



I am 63 years old uncircumcised and never had a problem, I shower or bathe everyday and obviously wash my genital area. My partner, she prefers me as I am and I would never have my sons circumcised.



Am not circumcised and I've never encountered any of the problems you mentioned.Just teach him how to clean it properly when he reaches the appropriate age and he'll have no problems.



Circumcision is definitely not safer.... 200 kids die a year in America alone from this sick practice. The hygiene issue has been irrelevant for the past 50 years. We have showers in N.A (I'm Canadian). Intact guys rarely have issues, that is how your created, you are not created with faulty parts you know. Also females have a prepuce also (which is what the foreskin is really called), on a female it is a clitoral hood. We dont have our little girls cut up, even though its the same thing. Leaving your son intact will most likely never lead to an infection, you're more likely to have a complication from a circumcision than that.



As long as you don't let any quack american doctor force his foreskin down when he's young (it is attached to the head for years - and is meant to be) he should be fine.

I know more uncircumcised guys here (Canada) who had problems then ones from other countries where everyone is uncircumcised, and I figure its because of overzealous people trying to clean under the foreskin when it never should have been forced back. I would guess once it has been forced back, THEN it needs to be regularly cleaned.

No teasing growing up from other boys, and intact is more common now then it was for me growing up.

Some mild pushback from female partners.



I grew up in central Europe, where circumcision is not very common.
I ended up having it done at age 19, because of a case of "frenulum breve" in combination with a foreskin that was too long to not get in the way during intercourse.
In thinking back, I have to say I never really did experience any real problems such as infections.
Having experienced sex both before and after though, given my special predicament, I have to say it does make intercourse more pleasing for the man; the woman doesn't seem to feel any difference. I do sometimes wish it had been done earlier in life, not least because the scars would have healed better, leading to a more aesthetic outcome.



I, my friends, cousins and our respective kids were not circumcized and I haven't any of the problems you mention. I've never had an infection; however, my wife (and nieces, from what she tells me), have UIs occasionally, yet they're not having surgery. If you don't wash, smell can be an issue, but that's even worse in women, and they're not having surgery.

The fear you see in the people around you is the reason circumcision still occurs in the US. 70% of men in the world are not circumcised and they don't have the issues Americans are afraid of. It's plain ignorance.



Circumcision is no longer performed on the majority of infant males in the US. It used to be but not anymore (you need to update your statistics).

No, that is not true to any extent. Those are the uneducated American myths.
Circumcision is not healthier or cleaner in any way and does not prevent infections. And again circumcision is no longer as popular in the US, so circumcised males will be the MINORITY not the majority. So why would he be teased for being natural? Plus that's never an excuse to do anything. Conformity is pathetic, not something that should be concidered prideful.

I was circumcised for 17 years before I restored my foreskin, I'm 20 now and can't think of a single good thing about circumcision. All it does is greatly reduce sensitivity and function of the penis making sex a lot less enjoyable. I will forever resent my parents for (in my opinion) mutilating me at birth. There are no benefits to circumcision and I can't believe so many people out there spread myths and lies about the procedure. The foreskin is the greatest part of the penis and every male has a right to keep his until HE decides otherwise.

-Connor



This is what I know. Kavi is right, if the child is properly taught to clean, I doubt the issues will arise. However on a medical side note, its true. In the past, those whom don't treat their foreskin right end up prone to bacterial infections and whatnot, safer and cleaner, high probability. Odors on the other hand is very true.

Lets look at it another way, the hospital might be encouraging this, so the facts are slightly in their favor to gain money. Endless infections and tears on the other hand, is never going to happen(or so I believe).

I'm becoming a NMT, study a lot of medical things, for absolute no reason but the enjoyment of it, and for my family(Future-ly). Other than that, I have been circumcised, but they did a bad job? So, I have odors, it makes me a little self-conscious. More so personally important to me, when becoming nude for my lady friends it becomes a bit scary because of the foreskin. And I'm known to be quite the bad flirtatious outgoing guy, so its a surprise to them that I am shy to get down and dirty when it really comes down to it.

Thats just how I feel.



I am American. My sons, ftaher, gandfathers on both sides and my uncles and cousins are all natural (whole) -- what you call UN. No one had issues.

Male circumcision is nerve damage -- a cutting off about 20000 fine touch and stretch sensing nerve endings and removing a source of pleasure from the male FOR LIFE. This is 2/3 of the total pleasure source amputated! This is nerves, blood vessels, protective covering and pleasure zones taken away from a human before the human can experience this. The dynamics and function and pleasure from sex and masturbation of the penis is harmed for good.The only touch organ possessing as rich erogenous innervation as the foreskin is the clitoris. Circumcision deprives man of 2/3ds of the main erogenous zone constituted of the foreskin and the glans.

The other risks of cutting off penis parts (besides loss of sexual function, ED, PE and loss of PLEASURE) include curved or misshapen erection, painful erection, botches of all sorts (many requiring redo) and death. Boys DIE each year in the US from this sick practice.

Circumcision is a weird thing a cutting off of erogenous tissue. The long term harm is huge with nerve damage and harm to the sensory system. A whole range of sensation and sexual and protective function are lost. The lips and fingertips have similar touch sense. To take this away from another person without their consent is heinous.

The infection thing is part myth part bad medical advice. Boys that are natural should not have their foreskin touched by others. The US medical advice was to pull it back and scrub with soap. That causes problems including infections. Natural boys really have no problems if you don't retract THEIR foreskin.

Infant boys are EASIER to care for when they are natural (intact). The foreskin does not retract until late childhood or even puberty, so you do nothing special, just wipe the outside of his penis clean and leave it alone. Furthermore, to prevent painful and bleeding erections later in life, doctors are now commonly leaving more skin behind- in a cut boy this means you may have to push the left over skin back at every diaper change and clean beneath it to prevent it from adhering or infecting. The very thing that mother's think they avoid by circumcising!



Your friends and family are wrong. They are basing their opinion on old wives' tales and prejudice. Contrary to what they're saying, a circumcised penis is MORE likely to get infected, it's MORE likely to smell (because the foreskin contains the tools needed to combat smelly yeast infections) and circumcision is now so rare that circumcised boys are more likely to be teased for being different (not that avoiding being teased is ever a 'reason' to cut off a healthy body part).

Also, circumcision is LESS safe (hundreds of babies die from it every year) and LESS hygienic (the foreskin exists precisely to keep the penis clean and healthy).

As for foreskin tears, these are most often caused by parents of intact boys forcing the foreskin back (before it is separated from the glans) in a misguided attempt to keep it clean. The foreskin should never be retracted until it has separated - and this separation may not happen until the boy is well into his teens.

The so-called 'problems' with intact penises are usually caused by parents (and sometimes even doctors) not knowing that a boy's foreskin should be left alone. Problems such as phimosis, tearing of the foreskin, chronic infection etc., are almost always caused by overzealous penile care. These problems are at epidemic levels in the US (where circumcision was until recently the norm), but rarely appear elsewhere (where 90+% of men are intact). Essentially, this means that in the US, even intact boys are damaged by circumcision - because caregivers are ignorant of normal penile care. In the US they force the foreskin back, damaging it irreparably, they then use harsh chemicals to clean it, which both makes the damage worse and destroys the foreskin's natural cleansers and antibiotics. If only they would leave boys' penises alone they would avoid all these so-called 'foreskin problems'.

As an intact man, I have never had any unusual problems with my foreskin. I was, at one point, misdiagosed with phimosis, but as usual, it was because the doctor was ignorant of normal penile care, so he assumed that a foreskin that was fused to the glans should retract. This even happens outside of the US - and it accounts for many unnecessary circumcisions in Europe and elsewhere.

The fact is, the foreskin evolved the way it did for a reason - for many reasons actually. If it was useless or harmful, natural selection would have removed it.

IMPORTANT NOTE! If you're in the US, you will have to guard your child's penis. Sadly, there are many doctors here (I'm in the US too) who will try to force your child's foreskin back. The kid's foreskin can be ruined in a second by an ignorant doctor. Make sure your pediatrician knows how to care for a foreskin. Makes sure he or she knows not to pull it back. Makes sure nurses in the hospital know too. It only takes one ignorant caregiver to destroy your child's genital health for life.

I'm a Briton living in the US who is appalled at the sheer ignorance and prejudice here when it comes to the male genitals. Circumcision is an awful abuse that must be stopped. Americans should be embarrassed and ashamed at its continuance here.



Lol, americans are trying SO HARD to make foreskin look like a horrible thing, just to rationalize this stupid custom (sorry if i'm offensive but it really is stupid).
Routine circumcision is so obviously BS that only 2 european countries cared to even HAVE AN OPINION about it. Britain, because they used to circumcise some 60 years ago (they are now against it), and more recently, Holland :
"KNMG [Royal Dutch Medical Association] is calling upon doctors to actively and insistently inform parents who are considering the procedure of the absence of medical benefits and the danger of complications."
See link below. Read the full text if you have time, it's very interesting.
More anecdotally, in France (#1 country when it comes to health care, according to WHO) there is a very good TV show about health. One episode was about circumcision. It wasn't anti-circumcision, they explained how it was done, sometime might be needed, etc. But american-style "routine" circ, they said 2 sentences about is as the example of "pseudo-medical" reason to circumcise (which is really all it deserves). Enough said I guess.

"odors"
A vagina is MUCH smellier than a penis (I'm bisexual), how comes nobody in USA care to install a miserable toilet shower, so it is cleaner and do not macerate all day in urine? It would take good care of penis and anus cleanliness too, btw. This is the ultimate proof that circumcision in USA in *NOT* about hygiene.
And if they tell you about smegma, well females have smegma too, and personally I have never seen that thing on my dong or on my partners'. Actually I wouldn't even know about it if it was not for circumcision talks.

http://knmg.artsennet.nl/Diensten/knmgpu…



Hi. I'm not in the groups you mentioned but from South Africa. The thing is I am not cut. Its all natural for me. The infection part is not so much true. For 25 years now I only had infection 3 times. And non was caused from having a foreskin. I got it from not going to the bathroom when I should and from using soap as lube. As for the stink every one is concerned of it can be eliminated by washing every day and cleaning between the glance and foreskin by pulling it back. The foreskin tears only happen if the foreskin is tight and is pulled back with force. For a tight foreskin there is a stretching exercise that can help but if that don't help cutting is the only one left. Good luck and do some internet browsing on the topic. One down side of cut men is the loss of sensation on the glance because of the skin that thickens



You should let your own child decide when he grows up! Honestly circumcision doesn't do anygood. What infections are you talking about? You don't wash yourself down there or something? I wash mine everyday. Circumcising your child is like docking your dog's tail. Do it. I dare you. Should we all have extension pipes from our anus too so that we don't have to wipe our asses and fear for diseases from not wiping our ***? Just wipe your ***.



ok, i am not a man but i am married to an uncircumcisied irish man and am the mother of two uncircumcised boys. none of them has EVER had any infection or other trouble with their foreskin or because of it. i highly recommend leaving a boy (if you have a boy) intact. all this talk about uncircumcised boys and men coming down with constant infections is a load of rubbish. my brother, father and nephews are also uncircumcised and i know that there hasn't been any infections there either.
if you and hubby don't want this then just tell your friends and family to back off. it is your decision, not theirs or the hospitals. (be warned that the hospital will try and push it because they get paid extra from your insurance company for the cirumcision)



Circumcision was the first and best thing my parents ever did for me. No way would I want a foreskin and all the problems that guys have that arent circumcised.



here are your pros and cons. I hope this helps u to better understand.
for my Personal opinion I would do it.

Foreskin removal is a surgical procedure, albeit a usually small and quick procedure. It still involves cutting or clamping of skin, which can result in bleeding, infection, and in very rare cases, damage can be done to the penis. It also causes pain. Whereas in the past, doctors often performed it on newborn babies without anesthesia, it is now the norm to provide local anesthesia.

Why do so many Americans chose this procedure for their babies if it is not for religious or cultural reasons? Many parents believe it is more hygienic to remove the foreskin. Many of the men have been circumcised, and they believe that their sons will want to look like them in that way. They also believe that their sons will want to look like most of the other boys. While there are possible complications, millions of babies are circumcised without any problem.

It can be argued that the possibility of future problems is not a good enough reason to remove the foreskin of every male baby. This debate has gone on century after century, and decade after decade. Some of the new evidence to support the procedure includes the fact that circumcision appears to protect men from many sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). This includes HIV (the AIDS virus), HPV (human papillomavirus, genital warts), chlamydia, and possibly others. It also lowers the incidence of urinary tract infections. Because of the decreased incidence of HPV, there may be less penile cancer and less cervical cancer in women whose partners are circumcised.

If you are trying to decide what to do if you have a baby boy, you can certainly talk to your doctor and get his or her advice. If the procedure is going to be done in the hospital, you should find out if anesthesia is going to be used.

If you decide against circumcision, you need to learn how to clean the area as the baby gets older. You should not attempt to retract the foreskin of an infant. After two or three years, when the skin becomes retractable, you must carefully clean the area. Eventually, your baby will grow up and will need to do it himself. As for the STDs, using a condom provides more protection. However, from a public health point of view, anything that reduces the spread of STDs is a good thing.

This is one surgical procedure that does not have a definite yes or no in terms of performing it on a baby. There is a constant back-and-forth of opinion. There are people who feel very strongly for it, as well as against it. At this time, the pendulum seems to be swinging back more towards recommending circumcision.

Should an uncircumcised boy grow up and have trouble with his foreskin in terms of serious infections, he may wind up with the surgery as an adult, which can be both very painful and also psychologically traumatic. That thought may be one of the reasons why parents chose to have infants circumcised.

I wish u luck on your diction,



Well, I know you're asking for foreign advice, but I am American and I'm circumcised. I'm pretty glad my parents made that decision, seeing as all my friends (girls and guys) think of uncircumcised penis' weird/nasty. I know you hate to think of it I'm sure, but later in life he'll be...sexually active (forgive me! hah) and it could lead to a lot of making fun of. If thats the case and he chooses to get circumcised, it's supposed to hurt pretty badly. Which is why it's preformed at birth. I too have heard of the infections and such, though not extremely common..they still happen.

Honestly, it's all up to you guys.




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