Circumcision

Circumcision: what are the options?

Parents usually land on one of these 3 approaches.

1. 1. Circumcise in the newborn period

   The baby is circumcised in the first days or weeks.

2. 2. Decide after medical counseling

   You talk it through with your doctor before choosing.

3. 3. Leave intact, let the child decide later

   The baby is not circumcised, and can choose for himself when older.

Circumcision: what does the evidence say?

Experts disagree. Credible bodies or researchers disagree — decide whose guidance you'll weigh. (Contested between bodies; values in practice)

The AAP's parent page (updated October 2025) still says the health benefits of newborn male circumcision outweigh the risks, describes complications as rare and usually minor, stresses that it is painful and should be done with numbing, and frames the decision as the parents'. The 2012 policy statement behind it is reported by several sources, some critics of circumcision, to have lapsed in 2017 without being reaffirmed; that was not confirmed from the AAP itself. CPS (2015): not recommended routinely

Sources

• HealthyChildren.org
• CPS

What else is worth knowing?

Circumcision is the removal of the foreskin from the penis. It is done for religious, cultural, medical and personal reasons, and medical bodies in different countries take different positions. It is usually done in the first days of life, with pain relief.

Questions to ask each other

• What are each of our views and where do they come from?
• What would we want to ask our provider before deciding?
• If we had a boy, how would we handle it if we disagreed?

More in Newborn medical choices

• Vitamin K at birth
• Erythromycin eye ointment
• Hepatitis B at birth
• Newborn screening (heel prick, hearing, heart)
• Tongue-tie release
• First-year vaccine schedule
• Choosing the child's doctor