Why is circumcision done?

Answer 1

In general, more and more people are choosing to keep their full foreskins as they were when they were born.

Circumcision is a religious rite practiced by Jews in accordance with instructions with the Torah. The majority of people to be circumcised are Muslims and with them it is a cultural practice as there is no mention of circumcision in their holy book the Qu'ran (although it is in the hadith). There are also primitive tribes here and there throughout the world that practice it usually as a right of passage from boyhood to manhood. The practice was introduced into English speaking cultures during the Victorian era. In that time British medics came to the conclusion that masturbation was responsible for a huge variety of diseases ranging from syphilis to insanity. They also felt that by circumcising boys they would be less inclined to masturbate. The practice took off like wild fire.

In more modern times, it is still being done for religious reasons in many places. Also, the World Health Organization (WHO) encourages the practice as part of an HIV reduction plan. Recent research has shown that circumcised males are 30% less likely to become infected with HIV. Some studies done in Kenya and Uganda show a 51 to 53% HIV reduction rate. Due to this, circumcision rates are on the rise in some areas of the world, such as northern and western Africa. Some cultures also feel it should be done for more aesthetic or hygienic reasons, but those are more debatable.

Even more recent research has reveiled that the rate of HIV infection is seriously higher among those thart have beenciscumcised. the fact is that there is no health reason for circumcicion. HIV infections are controled by condom use and education there is no evidence whasoever that the intact penis is anymore likely to become infected.
In the main they are done for religious or right of passage and other cultural reasons. In English speaking cultures there is still a section of the society that is duped into believing there are benefits to health as a result of a culture begun in the British Victorian era.

Answer 2

for reasons of religion and culture it is also used a a rite to pas a boy into manhood There are no known benefits as a result of the practice. as a mater of there are many serous drawbacks and dangers involved.

Answer 3

For Jews, circumcision is done because God told Abraham "every male among you shall be circumcised" (Gen. 17) as part of the covenant between God and the Jewish people.

Since that time, virtually all Jews have observed the command of circumcision (Genesis ch.17) for close to four millennia, even in times of religious persecution under the Greeks, Romans, Spaniards, Soviets and others. Circumcision is the indelible sign of God's covenant with Abraham and is just as important as Yom Kippur in terms of the stringency which the Torah places upon it. And similar to Yom Kippur, it is one of the observances which are common to Orthodox, Conservative and Reform Jews alike.

While we do not keep God's commands because of physical benefits, it is still interesting to note that circumcision has been known to offer virtually complete protection from penile cancer. According to a recent review article in the New England Journal of Medicine, none of the over 1,600 persons studied with this cancer had been circumcised in infancy. In the words of researchers Cochen and McCurdy, the incidence of penile cancer in the U.S. is "essentially zero" among circumcised men.
Also, research at Johns Hopkins University Medical School in Baltimore have shown that circumcised men are six to eight times less likely to become infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Researchers believe that protection is due to the removal of the foreskin, which contains cells that have HIV receptors which scientists suspect are the primary entry point for the HIV virus (Reuters, March 25, 2004).Several studies reported that circumcised boys were between 10 to 39 times less likely to develop urinary tract infections during infancy than uncircumcised boys. In addition, circumcision protects against bacterial, fungal, and parasitic infections and a variety of other conditions related to hygiene. The extremely low rate of Cervical cancer in Jewish women (9 to 22 times less than among non-Jewish women) is thought to be related to the practice of circumcision. As a result of studies like these, a number of prestigious medical organizations such as the California Medical Association have recognized the benefits of circumcision.As an operation, circumcision has an extremely small complication rate. A study in the New England Journal of Medicine (1990) reported a complication rate of 0.19 percent when circumcision is performed by a physician. When performed by a trained mohel, the rate falls to 0.13 percent or about 1 in 800. When a complication occurs, it is usually due to the bleeding, which is easily correctable. No other surgical procedure can boast such figures for complication-free operations.
One reason why there are so few complications involving bleeding may be that the major clotting agents, prothrombin and vitamin K, do not reach peak levels in the blood until the eighth day of life. Prothrombin levels are normal at birth, drop to very low levels in the next few days, and return to normal at the end of the first week. One study showed that by the eighth day, prothrombin levels reach 110 percent of normal. In the words of Dr. Armand J. Quick, author of several works on the control of bleeding, "It hardly seems accidental that the rite of circumcision was postponed until the eighth day by the Mosaic law."See also:

http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/144122/jewish/Brit-Milah-Circumcision.htm

http://www.milah.net/

http://judaism.about.com/od/lifeevents/a/britmilah.htm

Answer 4

For Jews, circumcision is done because God told Abraham "every male among you shall be circumcised" (Gen. 17) as part of the covenant between God and the Jewish people.

Since that time, virtually all Jews have observed the command of circumcision (Genesis ch.17) for close to four millennia, even in times of religious persecution under the Greeks, Romans, Spaniards, Soviets and others. Circumcision is the indelible sign of God's covenant with Abraham and is just as important as Yom Kippur in terms of the stringency which the Torah places upon it. And similar to Yom Kippur, it is one of the observances which are common to Orthodox, Conservative and Reform Jews alike.
While we do not keep God's commands because of physical benefits, it is still interesting to note that circumcision has been known to offer virtually complete protection from penile cancer. According to a recent review article in the New England Journal of Medicine, none of the over 1,600 persons studied with this cancer had been circumcised in infancy. In the words of researchers Cochen and McCurdy, the incidence of penile cancer in the U.S. is "essentially zero" among circumcised men.
Also, research at Johns Hopkins University Medical School in Baltimore have shown that circumcised men are six to eight times less likely to become infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. Researchers believe that protection is due to the removal of the foreskin, which contains cells that have HIV receptors which scientists suspect are the primary entry point for the HIV virus (Reuters, March 25, 2004).Several studies reported that circumcised boys were between 10 to 39 times less likely to develop urinary tract infections during infancy than uncircumcised boys. In addition, circumcision protects against bacterial, fungal, and parasitic infections and a variety of other conditions related to hygiene. The extremely low rate of cervical cancer in Jewish women (9 to 22 times less than among non-Jewish women) is thought to be related to the practice of circumcision. As a result of studies like these, a number of prestigious medical organizations such as the California Medical Association have recognized the benefits of circumcision.As an operation, circumcision has an extremely small complication rate. A study in the New England Journal of Medicine (1990) reported a complication rate of 0.19 percent when circumcision is performed by a physician. When performed by a trained mohel, the rate falls to 0.13 percent or about 1 in 800. When a complication occurs, it is usually due to the bleeding, which is easily correctable. No other surgical procedure can boast such figures for complication-free operations.
One reason why there are so few complications involving bleeding may be that the major clotting agents, prothrombin and vitamin K, do not reach peak levels in the blood until the eighth day of life. Prothrombin levels are normal at birth, drop to very low levels in the next few days, and return to normal at the end of the first week. One study showed that by the eighth day, prothrombin levels reach 110 percent of normal. In the words of Dr. Armand J. Quick, author of several works on the control of bleeding, "It hardly seems accidental that the rite of circumcision was postponed until the eighth day by the Mosaic law."See also:

http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/144122/jewish/Brit-Milah-Circumcision.htm

http://www.milah.net/

http://judaism.about.com/od/lifeevents/a/britmilah.htm