A mother has taken to social media to ask for advice on whether or not to have her son circumcised.
Circumcision is a very contentious topic. The procedure involves the removal of the foreskin from the penis, typically of a baby boy. It's a difficult subject because - carried out at such a tender age - the infant patient undergoing the procedure cannot consent to it.
Circumcision is typically sought for religious reasons or for hygiene purposes as it is thought that the penis is easier to clean when the foreskin is removed.
In any case, the mom took to the Mamas Uncut website to get advice on her predicament.
The anonymous user writes: "So I just had a baby boy, and we are not circumcising him, and all my friends and family are telling me I’m making a big mistake not circumcising and boys should be circumcised for a number of different reasons.
"Moms of boys, I need advice. Am I making a mistake? Why is everybody so concerned?"
The anonymous mom received advice from a number of fellow Mamas Uncut users, with most expressing views against circumcision.
One person wrote: "I noticed that some here, believe that the baby can’t feel PAIN. What they really mean is it’s painful as hell but they’ll forget because they are too young to remember. Don’t put him through it. Let him decide when he’s older."
Another shared: "I have 2 intact boys. Happy and healthy. We don’t believe in genital mutilation. It also permanently alters the brain from the extreme pain no matter what 'numbing' agent they use.
"When they hit puberty is when you start teaching them to gently retract clean with water and replace. Till them, no retraction at all, as doing so early can cause adhesions scaring, etc! Very Simple!"
However, a third user explained that she did decide to have her own child circumcised.
She wrote: "What you do to your son is your decision. My fiancé and I circumcised our son because it was our decision. I didn’t want to have to deal with cleaning the foreskin and I wanted to decrease his chance of getting STD’s when he becomes an adult."
What are your thoughts on the issue? Let us know in the comments section.
