Circumcision FAQ
When and why was routine neonatal circumcision introduced in English-speaking Western countries?

Doctors in the English-speaking countries started circumcising babies in the mid-1800s to prevent masturbation, which some doctors claimed caused many diseases, including epilepsy, tuberculosis and insanity. Of course, these arguments are not accepted today.

Nonreligious infant circumcision is not an issue in European, Asian or South American countries. In Canada the average rate of infant circumcision for boys is roughly 25%, with large regional variations. The rate in the United States has dropped to less than 60%, and will drop below 50% in a few years if present trends continue. This is already true in the Western US (35% in 1993).