Circumcision has been in the news lately, mostly because the American Academy of Pediatrics changed their stance on circumcision and decided that, after all these years saying it wasn’t a good thing, the health benefits now outweigh the risk. And because they’ve changed their stance, insurers should pay for it.

Keep in mind; this isn’t an actual recommendation to circumcise your sons by the AAP. Instead, it is a guideline for you to make your own decision either way.  There are a ton of great articles dissecting the arguments for and against like this one and this one, and because I’ve never felt like it was any of my business to even question why one parent would decide for or against such a thing, I’ll leave you to dissect the most recent research.

One of the major worries for a parent of an uncircumcised son is that the foreskin will never retract. The official stance of the AAP on care of foreskin is, and I quote,

“Most boys will be able to retract their foreskins by the time they are 5 years old, yet others will not be able to until the teen years. As a boy becomes more aware of his body, he will most likely discover how to retract his own foreskin. But foreskin retraction should never be forced. Until the foreskin fully separates, do not try to pull it back. Forcing the foreskin to retract before it is ready can cause severe pain, bleeding, and tears in the skin.”

I have two sons, both uncircumcised. Obviously now that the AAP has changed their stance, I’m not going to Google a bunch of stuff, panic, and head to the doctor to beg for circumcision. After all, they’re 7 and 10, so that’s not even an option for us unless something happens where it’s medically necessary.