My husband and I have been questioning whether we should circumcise the baby or not. I never thought it would be so difficult to decide. I talk to my clients all the time about whether or not they are going to and if they should or if they shouldn't. We tell them that insurance does not pay for it because doctors are finding research stating it isn't medically necessary. I never really thought about what we would want for the baby, but now, now that it's OUR baby, it's so tough!
My first instinct was that we would circumcise, naturally. I've never seen an uncircumcised penis (only in books) and I have to say that an uncircumcised penis seems to be unattractive. We are finding in the research out there that this is everyone's impression. Most families have their baby boy's penis circumcised simply because it looks better. Some do it because they believe it must be more hygienic. Studies out there show that either way, it's the same. Yeah, when your little boy is 3 years old, you'll have to show him to pull back the skin when bathing or wiping, but it would be the same thing as showing your 3 year old little girl to wipe from front to back... That's all it takes.
Studies reveal that children on the West Coast are not circumcised as much as boys in the Midwest. It's 50/50 in California. It's about 80/20 in the upper Midwest. People are saying that now that more and more insurance companies are not paying for it, there will be more uncircumcised babies. There will be a decrease in circumcision and boys will not have to worry about not looking like each other! Yay...!
So, we're still on the fence. Should we have our baby boy go through the unnecessary, painful, but brief experience or should we just say no and move on? It's still very hard to answer. The more I think about it, the more I think we should just do it, but then I think is it really that important? Any comments, suggestions, experiences would be greatly appreciated here.
