Why is circumcision so popular in the United States? And it's not about hygiene or religion at all

Many people know that circumcision is widespread in the United States, but the reason for this remains a mystery for most. Although it is obvious that this procedure is not related to religious beliefs, because only 1.7% of Jews and less than 1% of Muslims live in the country. At the same time, 75% of all boys and men are circumcised.

There is also an opinion that the removal of the foreskin is carried out for the purpose of hygiene, but this is not entirely true. Let's find out where the legs of this custom grow from and what does the First World War have to do with it?

It all started back in the days of existence The British Empire under the reign of the Queen Victoria (1837-1901). Then all boys were recommended circumcision for two reasons at once. The first is to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. The second is the fear of self-satisfaction.

In the Victorian era, it was believed that masturbation could be dangerous for health. Doctors believed that it leads to exhaustion of the body, heart disease and even paralysis. There was an opinion that men who often engaged in self-satisfaction have a tendency to suicide and loss of reason. The best way to avoid these terrible consequences was to remove the foreskin of the boys immediately after birth.

It is noteworthy that the operation was carried out without anesthesia, so that " the pain accompanying the intervention affected the psyche."

The procedure has become popular in the British dominions-Canada, New Zealand, Australia. And the similarity of cultural traditions and language led to the fact that soon circumcision began to be done in the United States.

The First World War contributed to the widespread spread of this trend. Before sending soldiers to the front, they were necessarily circumcised to avoid the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. When the military returned home, they themselves asked the doctors to cut off the foreskin of their sons while they were still young, because they remembered perfectly well what pain this intervention is accompanied by in adulthood.

Soon, circumcision became a kind of vaccination and even entered into medical insurance. It is now that parents in the United States are being asked for permission to perform an operation. In the 50s and 60s, the removal of the foreskin was done to all babies by default.

There are also other reasons why circumcision is still so popular in the United States. One of them is the incredibly hot climate in some states, for example, in Texas. Here, circumcision is often done for hygiene purposes.

Another reason is the prevention of diseases. Statistics show that men who have had their foreskin removed are twice as likely to become infected with HIV, since the cells most susceptible to the virus are located in this place.

It is also believed that the partners of such men are much less likely to get cervical cancer and are less susceptible to inflammatory processes than others. In addition, thanks to circumcision, the duration of sexual intercourse is almost doubled, as well as the opportunity to give more pleasure to the partner.

Currently, there is an ongoing debate in the United States about the need for circumcision in infants. Activists insist that the decision to perform the operation should be made by parents, doctors-they point to the WHO recommendation that circumcision is one of the factors of HIV prevention.