Circumcision. Newborn Male Circumcision. Paediatric Child Health

Circumcision
Name
Institution
Circumcision
Male circumcision has been practiced for years and those who practice it have different reasons, ranging from traditional or religious beliefs to health and hygiene beliefs. The controversy surrounding circumcision stems from ethical issues and denial of rights regarding one’s body. As indicated by NOCIRC (2016), more parents have become aware of the risks associated with infant circumcision, which has greatly contributed to the decline of male circumcision in the United States. To better understand why the issue is so controversial, it is good to address the take from both sides. On one side, some people feel that male circumcision constitutes genital mutilation and physical assault on an infant. On the other hand, some people feel that it is okay to ignore the ethical issues surrounding circumcision, as long as there are benefits to be derived from the procedure.
In this discussion, I will focus mainly on the benefits of circumcision, which does not only favor men alone, but also extends to women, as indicated by the Canadian Paediatric Society (2015). For starters, male circumcision has been shown to reduce the risk of cancer among the female partners of men who have been circumcised. As such, as much as routine circumcision is being discouraged, it is important to focus on how the society is benefiting, especially when it comes to reducing diseases that are affecting the community as a whole, such as cancer. Further, it has been shown that circumcision also reduces penile cancer (Canadian Paediatric Society, 2015) and although its rare in developed countries, it is still better to be safe than sorry. The second benefit of male circumcision is the reduction of Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs). The evidence indicates that circumcision reduces the risk of UTIs by 90%, (Canadian Paediatric Society, 2015) and since UTIs also affect infants, the option of circumcision should not be removed. Further, a majority of the studies on HIV/AIDS indicate that male circumcision lowers the risk of infection and transmission. Although HIV/Aids prevalence in developed countries is very low, it does not mean that we should disregard the evidence showing that some population benefit from male circumcision. With these benefits in mind, I believe that shying away from the issue does not do us any good, because I believe male circumcision allows us to be proactive rather than reactive when it comes to some of the mentioned medical issues.
Fighting against male circumcision, in my opinion, is an indication of some level of ignorance because it involves acting as if the evidence supporting the medical benefits of circumcision does not exist. Further, I feel like the assault, as those against circumcision refer to it, is a bit far-fetched, because when the procedure ...