Should My Newborn Baby Boy Be Circumcised?
If you belong to a church or to another particular religious organization, then your decision might well be based on your beliefs. Otherwise, aside from religion, you’ll have to decide for yourself what’s best for your newborn baby son.
Circumcision is normally performed at the hospital soon after a woman has delivered a baby, or later at a doctor’s office. A male that is circumcised has had the foreskin that covers the glans, or the head, of his penis surgically removed.
Normally, this type of surgical procedure is considered to be “minor.” With proper care, the penis is usually healed within a week’s time. However, as with all operations, there are risks involved, such as pain, excessive bleeding, and infection.
To answer the question, “Should My Newborn Baby Boy Be Circumcised?”, you’ll need to weigh the pros and the cons of this procedure. To start with, one of the benefits of having your young son’s penis circumcised is that he’ll have a lower chance of getting bladder infections. A study has shown that out of nearly 60,000 male infants, slightly less than 2% of the circumcised males suffered from bladder infections, as compared to 7% of the non-circumcised males.
More importantly, other medical studies have shown that male circumcision can actually reduce the risk of Penile Cancer. According to The American Cancer Society, Penile Cancer affects one man in every 100,000 men in the United States. In 2006 alone, that translates to an estimated 1,500 cases in which nearly 300 men will die from this disease. This offers some small proof that baby boys who have been circumcised tend to grow up into healthier men.
Another study has also revealed that male circumcision actually helps to reduce the incidences of Cervical Cancer in females. It’s thought that men who have circumcised penises don’t suffer from Human papillomavirus (HPV) as much as men who aren’t. Some types of HPV can lead to Cervical Cancer. HPV is also considered to be the leading cause of sexually transmitted infections in the world. According to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, more than 20,000,000 people are infected with Human papillomavirus in the United States.
The American College of Pediatrics agrees there are possible health benefits associated with male circumcision. However, in answer to the question, “Should My Newborn Baby Boy Be Circumcised?”, the organization does not believe that the surgical procedure should be a usual practice.
Overall, an estimated 65% of the boys in the United States are circumcised. Your decision to have your newborn boy circumcised or not will ultimately depend on your own personal decisions. To make the best decision, talk to your baby’s other parent, and consult your healthcare professional as well.
