Ask Lemmy

I worked in pediatric urology so I'll give you their perspective first. The urologist's assistant said the thing to do is assess honestly whether you'll keep up with your child's hygiene, if you are comfortable ensuring they'll clean their foreskin as they grow up. My friend says she really had to stand over her son and tell him to wash his penis again and again. Boys are not the best at hygiene sometimes, so as long as you are comfortable ensuring he does so, don't circumcise. If you don't think you'll be comfortable with that, be realistic, because boys get what's called phimosis where the foreskin becomes stuck and doesn't retract, and while there's a cream called betnovate you can apply to relieve this, if it becomes chronic and there's scarring, having circumcision as an older child is much more of an ordeal, as they have to go under general anesthesia. These are the pros and cons.

I think circumcision is a bad idea and don't recommend it myself because I've heard a baby crying during one personally and that's horrifying, but this is what the medical reality of it is, so be honest with yourself about what you can do as a parent. It's honestly a terrible thing for them to go through without anesthesia as well. Bullying be damned, anyone who is offended by a normal penis isn't worth your time anyway.