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The '''United States of America''' are also known as the '''United States''' or simply '''America''' or by initialism such as '''USA''' or '''US''' or '''U.S.A.''' or '''U.S.''' (Please note that ''America'' also is the name of two geological continents: ''North America'' and ''South America'' which include many more countries than just the ''United States of America'' which are the topic of this article. See also: [[:Category:Americas]].)
The '''United States of America''' are also known as the '''United States''' or simply '''America''' or by initialism such as '''USA''' or '''US''' or '''U.S.A.''' or '''U.S.''' (Please note that ''America'' also is the name of two geological continents: ''North America'' and ''South America'' which include many more countries than just the ''United States of America'' which are the topic of this article. See also: [[:Category:Americas]].)


America is predominantly an English-speaking nation. As in other English-speaking nations, non-therapeutic [[circumcision]] of boys was popularized in the late nineteenth century, however, the practice of non-therapeutic circumcision of boys is now in decline. The decline of the unnecessary practice has been slowed by continual encouragement and promotion of circumcision by the medical industry. The United States is unique in having a medical industry that aggressively promotes the practice of medically-unnecessary infant circumcision.
America is predominantly an English-speaking nation. As in other English-speaking nations, non-therapeutic [[circumcision]] of boys was popularized in the late nineteenth century, however, the practice of non-therapeutic circumcision of boys is now in decline. The decline of the unnecessary practice has been slowed by continual encouragement and promotion of circumcision by the medical industry. The United States is unique in having a medical industry that aggressively promotes the practice of medically-unnecessary infant circumcision.  


==History==
Despite the financially self-serving promotional efforts of the circumcision industry, The incidence of non-therapeutic circumcision of infant boys was reported to have continued its decline to 52.1 percent in 2016.<ref name="jacobson2021">{{REFjournal
Jews have lived in America since before the Revolutionary War. They have always practiced [[Jewish circumcision| ritual circumcision]], ([[Brit Milah]]), of boys on the eighth day of life in accordance with the [[Abrahamic covenant]], however this was only for a very small percentage of the population.
|last=Jacobson
 
|first=Deborah L.
One may be certain that the eighteenth century [https://www.nationalgeographic.org/article/founding-fathers/ Founding Fathers of the United States] of America were men with [[intact]] [[Foreskin| foreskins]] as were the [[foreskinned]] men who fought the American Civil War (1861-1865).
|init=
 
|author-link=
Non-therapeutic [[circumcision]] of males for non-religious reasons originated with [[Claude François Lallemand]] in 1836 in France but soon spread to the [[United Kingdom]] in the early nineteenth century, from which it eventually spread to other English-speaking nations.
|last2=Balmert
 
|first2=Lauren C.
===Late nineteenth century===
|init2=
The late nineteenth century was characterized by various medical doctors advancing all sorts of absurd reasons for the performance of non-therapeutic circumcision.
|author2-link=
 
|last3=Holl
The first recorded non-religious circumcision of a boy in the United States occurred in 1870 when [[Lewis Albert Sayre]], a prominent New York City doctor, circumcised a boy of five years of age for paralysis. [[Lewis Albert Sayre|Sayre]] then continued to advocate circumcision for numerous reasons until his death in 1900. According to [[Lewis Albert Sayre|Sayre]], circumcision was recommended for paralysis, epilepsy, hernia, lunacy, curvature of the spine, and clubfoot.
|first3=Jane L.
 
|init3=
M. J. Moses (1871) advocated circumcision to prevent [[masturbation]].<ref name="moses1871">{{REFjournal
|author3-link=
  |last=Moses
|last4=Rosoklija
  |init=MJ
|first4=Ilina
  |title=The value of circumcision as a hygienic and therapeutic measure
|init4=
  |journal=New York Medical Journal
|author4-link=
  |date=1871-11
|last5=Davis
  |volume=14
|first5=Matthew M.
  |issue=4
|init5=
  |pages=368-74
|author5-link=
  |url=
|last6=Johnson
  |quote=
|first6Emilie K.
  |pubmedID=
|init6=
  |pubmedCID=
|author6-link=
  |DOI=
  |etal=no
  |accessdate=
  |title=Nationwide Circumcision Trends: 2003 to 2016
  |trans-title=
|language=
  |journal=J Urol
|location=
  |date=2021-01
  |volume=205
  |issue=1
|article=
|page=
  |pages=257-63
  |url=https://www.auajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1097/JU.0000000000001316
|archived=
  |quote=
  |pubmedID=32716676
  |pubmedCID=
  |DOI=10.1097/JU.0000000000001316
  |accessdate=2021-10-15
}}</ref>
}}</ref>


[[H. H. Kane]] (1879) 'discovers' that circumcision cures nocturnal emissions and abdominal neuralgia.<ref>{{Kane1879}}</ref>
==History==
Jews have lived in America since before the Revolutionary War. They have always practiced [[Jewish circumcision| ritual circumcision]], ([[Brit Milah]]), of boys on the eighth day of life in accordance with the [[Abrahamic covenant]], however this was only for a very small percentage of the population.
 
One may be certain that the eighteenth century [https://www.nationalgeographic.org/article/founding-fathers/ Founding Fathers of the United States] of America were men with [[intact]] [[Foreskin| foreskins]] as were the [[foreskinned]] men who fought the American Civil War (1861-1865).
 
Non-therapeutic [[circumcision]] of males for non-religious reasons originated with [[Claude François Lallemand]] in 1836 in France but soon spread to the [[United Kingdom]] in the early nineteenth century, from which it eventually spread to other English-speaking nations.


Seventh-day Adventist [[John Harvey Kellogg]], {{MD}}, of Battle Creek, Michigan, was an important 19th century promoter of male circumcision. Although masturbation is never mentioned in the Bible, Dr. Kellogg believed that [[masturbation]] was immoral, sinful, and caused one to dream "impure dreams", which he believed was harmful to the mental faculties, resulting in mental disorders, such as feeblemindness.<ref name="kellogg1879">{{REFbook
===Late nineteenth century===
|url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/19924/19924-h/19924-h.htm
The late nineteenth century was characterized by various medical doctors advancing all sorts of absurd reasons for the performance of non-therapeutic circumcision.
|title=Plain Facts for Old and Young: Natural History and Hygiene of Organic Life (Sex, Marriage & Society Series)
|last=Kellogg
|first=John Harvey
|author-link=John Harvey Kellogg
|publisher=Ayer Publishing
|website=Gutenberg
|year=1888
|accessdate=2021-10-03
}}</ref> He believed that the urge to masturbate could be prevented by eating bland foods, for which purpose, he and his brother invented corn flakes.


Dr. Kellogg (1879) also recommended [[circumcision]] in cases "in which irritation is produced by retained secretions".<ref name="kellogg1879" />
The first recorded non-religious circumcision of a boy in the United States occurred in 1870 when [[Lewis Albert Sayre]], a prominent New York City doctor, circumcised a boy of five years of age for paralysis. [[Lewis Albert Sayre|Sayre]] then continued to advocate circumcision for numerous reasons until his death in 1900. According to [[Lewis Albert Sayre|Sayre]], circumcision was recommended for paralysis, epilepsy, hernia, lunacy, curvature of the spine, and clubfoot.


Dr. Kellogg perhaps is most famous for his book, ''Plain facts for young and old'' (1879), in which he advocated circumcision of boys as punishment for masturbation.<ref name="kellogg1879" />
M. J. Moses (1871) advocated circumcision to prevent [[masturbation]].<ref name="moses1871">{{REFjournal
 
|last=Moses
[[William G. Eggleston]], {{MA}}, {{MD}}, from Chicaco, {{USSC|IL}}, (1886) stated that [[foreskin]] of minors and the natural "phimosis" in minors would cause crossed eyes.<ref name="eggleston1886">{{Eggleston1886}}
|init=MJ
</ref>
|title=The value of circumcision as a hygienic and therapeutic measure
 
|journal=New York Medical Journal
Dr. [[William D. Gentry]] (1890) alleged that [[Retraction of the foreskin| phimosis in boys]] produces serious nervous derangements.<ref name="gentry1890">{{REFjournal
  |date=1871-11
  |last=Gentry
  |volume=14
  |first=William D.
  |issue=4
  |init=WD
  |pages=368-74
  |author-link=William D. Gentry
  |url=
  |title=Nervous Derangements Produced by Sexual Irregularities in Boys
  |quote=
  |journal=Medical Current
  |pubmedID=
  |date=1890-07
  |pubmedCID=
  |volume=6
  |DOI=
  |issue=7
  |accessdate=
  |pages=268-74
}}</ref>
}}</ref>


[[Elizabeth Blackwell]], {{MD}}, ({{LifeData|1821|1910}}), was born in England, but attended medical school in the United States. She was the first woman to become a medical doctor in the United States. Blackwell thought masturbation was immoral but that circumcision was not the way to correct it. She wrote against it in her 1894 book:
[[H. H. Kane]] (1879) 'discovers' that circumcision cures nocturnal emissions and abdominal neuralgia.<ref>{{Kane1879}}</ref>
<blockquote>Appeals to the fears of uninstructed parents on the grounds of cleanliness or of hardening the part are entirely fallacious and unsupported by evidence. It is a physiological fact that the natural lubricating secretion of every healthy part is beneficial, not injurious to the part thus protected, and that no attempt to render a sensitive part insensitive is either practicable or justifiable. The protection which nature affords to these parts is an aid to physical purity by affording necessary protection against constant external contact of a part which necessarily remains keenly sensitive; and bad habits in boys and girls cannot by prevented by surgical operations. Where no malformation exists, bad habits can only be forestalled by healthy moral and physical education.<ref>{{REFbook
 
  |first=Elizabeth
Seventh-day Adventist [[John Harvey Kellogg]], {{MD}}, of Battle Creek, Michigan, was an important 19th century promoter of male circumcision. Although masturbation is never mentioned in the Bible, Dr. Kellogg believed that [[masturbation]] was immoral, sinful, and caused one to dream "impure dreams", which he believed was harmful to the mental faculties, resulting in mental disorders, such as feeblemindness.<ref name="kellogg1879">{{REFbook
  |last=Blackwell
  |url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/19924/19924-h/19924-h.htm
  |author-link=Elizabeth Blackwell
  |title=Plain Facts for Old and Young: Natural History and Hygiene of Organic Life (Sex, Marriage & Society Series)
  |title=The Human Element in Sex; being a Medical Inquiry into the Relation of Sexual Physiology to Christian Morality
  |last=Kellogg
|url=https://archive.org/details/B20442622/page/n9/mode/2up
  |first=John Harvey
  |edition=2
  |author-link=John Harvey Kellogg
  |year=1894
  |publisher=Ayer Publishing
  |pages=35-36
  |website=Gutenberg
  |location=London
  |year=1888
  |publisher=J.& A. Churchill
  |accessdate=2021-10-03
}}</ref></blockquote>
}}</ref> He believed that the urge to masturbate could be prevented by eating bland foods, for which purpose, he and his brother invented corn flakes.


[[Peter Charles Remondino]], {{MD}}, was a San Diego, California physician, who was born in Turin (''Torino'') in 1846, but migrated with his family to the United States at the age of eight. There is some reason to believe that he was of Sephardic Jewish descent and had been circumcised while still in Turin, however this is uncertain.
Dr. Kellogg (1879) also recommended [[circumcision]] in cases "in which irritation is produced by retained secretions".<ref name="kellogg1879" />


Remondino clearly was highly intelligent. He mastered English, started medical school at age 17, treated wounded soldiers during the Civil War, and later moved to San Diego for his health.
Dr. Kellogg perhaps is most famous for his book, ''Plain facts for young and old'' (1879), in which he advocated circumcision of boys as punishment for masturbation.<ref name="kellogg1879" />


After moving to San Diego, he practiced medicine, served as an officer of several medical societies, and other regulatory agencies.
[[William G. Eggleston]], {{MA}}, {{MD}}, from Chicaco, {{USSC|IL}}, (1886) stated that [[foreskin]] of minors and the natural "phimosis" in minors would cause crossed eyes.<ref name="eggleston1886">{{Eggleston1886}}
</ref>


Remondino is famous for his 346 page book, ''The History of Circumcision''(1891).<ref name="remondino1891">{{REFbook
Dr. [[William D. Gentry]] (1890) alleged that [[Retraction of the foreskin| phimosis in boys]] produces serious nervous derangements.<ref name="gentry1890">{{REFjournal
  |last=Remondino
  |last=Gentry
  |first=Peter Charles
  |first=William D.
  |author-link=Peter Charles Remondino
  |init=WD
  |year=1891
  |author-link=William D. Gentry
  |title=History of Circumcision
  |title=Nervous Derangements Produced by Sexual Irregularities in Boys
|url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/23135/23135-h/23135-h.htm
  |journal=Medical Current
  |pages=
  |date=1890-07
  |location=Philadelphia
  |volume=6
  |publisher=F. A. Davis
  |issue=7
  |website=Welcome Collection
  |pages=268-74
  |accessdate=2021-09-29
}}</ref>
}}</ref>  


When Remondino discussed the [[foreskin]], he used the most horrific, derogatory, and disparaging language. He devoted thirteen chapters to the alleged evils and faults of the foreskin. It is not clear why he had such an extreme dislike for a natural and functional body part. His recommendation, of course, was for [[Adolescent and adult circumcision| circumcision]].
[[Elizabeth Blackwell]], {{MD}}, ({{LifeData|1821|1910}}), was born in England, but attended medical school in the United States. She was the first woman to become a medical doctor in the United States. Blackwell thought masturbation was immoral but that circumcision was not the way to correct it. She wrote against it in her 1894 book:
 
<blockquote>Appeals to the fears of uninstructed parents on the grounds of cleanliness or of hardening the part are entirely fallacious and unsupported by evidence. It is a physiological fact that the natural lubricating secretion of every healthy part is beneficial, not injurious to the part thus protected, and that no attempt to render a sensitive part insensitive is either practicable or justifiable. The protection which nature affords to these parts is an aid to physical purity by affording necessary protection against constant external contact of a part which necessarily remains keenly sensitive; and bad habits in boys and girls cannot by prevented by surgical operations. Where no malformation exists, bad habits can only be forestalled by healthy moral and physical education.<ref>{{REFbook
[[H. L. Rosenberry]], {{MD}}, (1894) published a paper "proving" that circumcision cures urinary and rectal incontinence.<ref name="rosenberry1894">{{Rosenberry1894}}</ref>
|first=Elizabeth
 
|last=Blackwell
By the end of the nineteenth century, America had at least one prominent physician and surgeon on the east coast promoting circumcision and another prominent physician and surgeon on the west coast promoting circumcision. There was no real medical science with which to dispute and discredit their false claims. Non-therapeutic circumcision of males was now well-established in the United States.
|author-link=Elizabeth Blackwell
|title=The Human Element in Sex; being a Medical Inquiry into the Relation of Sexual Physiology to Christian Morality
|url=https://archive.org/details/B20442622/page/n9/mode/2up
|edition=2
|year=1894
|pages=35-36
|location=London
|publisher=J.& A. Churchill
}}</ref></blockquote>
 
[[Peter Charles Remondino]], {{MD}}, was a San Diego, California physician, who was born in Turin (''Torino'') in 1846, but migrated with his family to the United States at the age of eight. There is some reason to believe that he was of Sephardic Jewish descent and had been circumcised while still in Turin, however this is uncertain.


===Early twentieth century===
Remondino clearly was highly intelligent. He mastered English, started medical school at age 17, treated wounded soldiers during the Civil War, and later moved to San Diego for his health.
The early twentieth century is characterized by advocacy of circumcision based on false claims to prevent cancer and sexually transmitted (venereal) disease; and by the involvement of the United States military services in the promotion of circumcision.


[[Ernest G. Mark]] (1901) noted that the "pleasurable sensations that are elicited from the extremely sensitive" [[Ridged band|inner lining]] of the [[foreskin]] may encourage a child to [[Masturbation|masturbate]], which is why he recommended circumcision since it "lessens the sensitiveness of the organ".<ref>{{Mark1901}}</ref>
After moving to San Diego, he practiced medicine, served as an officer of several medical societies, and other regulatory agencies.


Brimhall (1902) reported an amputation of a penis after circumcision.<ref name="brimhall1902">{{REFjournal
Remondino is famous for his 346 page book, ''The History of Circumcision''(1891).<ref name="remondino1891">{{REFbook
  |last=Brimhall
|last=Remondino
  |init=JB
|first=Peter Charles
  |author-link=
|author-link=Peter Charles Remondino
  |last2=
|year=1891
  |init2=
|title=History of Circumcision
|url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/23135/23135-h/23135-h.htm
|pages=
|location=Philadelphia
|publisher=F. A. Davis
|website=Welcome Collection
|accessdate=2021-09-29
}}</ref>
 
When Remondino discussed the [[foreskin]], he used the most horrific, derogatory, and disparaging language. He devoted thirteen chapters to the alleged evils and faults of the foreskin. It is not clear why he had such an extreme dislike for a natural and functional body part. His recommendation, of course, was for [[Adolescent and adult circumcision| circumcision]].
 
[[H. L. Rosenberry]], {{MD}}, (1894) published a paper "proving" that circumcision cures urinary and rectal incontinence.<ref name="rosenberry1894">{{Rosenberry1894}}</ref>
 
By the end of the nineteenth century, America had at least one prominent physician and surgeon on the east coast promoting circumcision and another prominent physician and surgeon on the west coast promoting circumcision. There was no real medical science with which to dispute and discredit their false claims. Non-therapeutic circumcision of males was now well-established in the United States.
 
===Early twentieth century===
The early twentieth century is characterized by advocacy of circumcision based on false claims to prevent cancer and sexually transmitted (venereal) disease; and by the involvement of the United States military services in the promotion of circumcision.
 
[[Ernest G. Mark]] (1901) noted that the "pleasurable sensations that are elicited from the extremely sensitive" [[Ridged band|inner lining]] of the [[foreskin]] may encourage a child to [[Masturbation|masturbate]], which is why he recommended circumcision since it "lessens the sensitiveness of the organ".<ref>{{Mark1901}}</ref>
 
Brimhall (1902) reported an amputation of a penis after circumcision.<ref name="brimhall1902">{{REFjournal
  |last=Brimhall
  |init=JB
  |author-link=
  |last2=
  |init2=
  |author2-link=
  |author2-link=
  |url=
  |url=
Line 1,482: Line 1,528:
}}</ref> Infant circumcision is a profit center for many American hospitals so parents are pushed to circumcise.
}}</ref> Infant circumcision is a profit center for many American hospitals so parents are pushed to circumcise.


Jacobson et al. (2021) collected circumcision statistics from the Kids' Inpatient Database from 2002 to 2016. They reported that the incidence of circumcision had "neonatal circumcision rates decreased significantly over time" with 55 percent being circumcised, which translates to a genital integrity (intact) rate of 45 percent. The previous intact rate for the nation had been reported to be 41.7 percent in 2010, so this represents an improvement of 7.9 percent in the number of intact boys. The incidence of circumcision for the entire United States had declined to 52.1 percent at the end of the study period (2016), which indicates that 47.9 percent of boys born in that year are intact.<ref name="jacobson2021">{{REFjournal
Jacobson et al. (2021) collected circumcision statistics from the Kids' Inpatient Database from 2002 to 2016. They reported that the incidence of circumcision had "neonatal circumcision rates decreased significantly over time" with 55 percent being circumcised, which translates to a genital integrity (intact) rate of 45 percent. The previous intact rate for the nation had been reported to be 41.7 percent in 2010, so this represents an improvement of 7.9 percent in the number of intact boys. The incidence of circumcision for the entire United States had declined to 52.1 percent at the end of the study period (2016), which indicates that 47.9 percent of boys born in that year are intact.<ref name="jacobson2021" />
|last=Jacobson
|first=Deborah L.
|init=
|author-link=
|last2=Balmert
|first2=Lauren C.
|init2=
|author2-link=
|last3=Holl
|first3=Jane L.
|init3=
|author3-link=
|last4=Rosoklija
|first4=Ilina
|init4=
|author4-link=
|last5=Davis
|first5=Matthew M.
|init5=
|author5-link=
|last6=Johnson
|first6Emilie K.
|init6=
|author6-link=
|etal=no
|title=Nationwide Circumcision Trends: 2003 to 2016
|trans-title=
|language=
|journal=J Urol
|location=
|date=2021-01
|volume=205
|issue=1
|article=
|page=
|pages=257-63
|url=https://www.auajournals.org/doi/abs/10.1097/JU.0000000000001316
|archived=
|quote=
|pubmedID=32716676
|pubmedCID=
|DOI=10.1097/JU.0000000000001316
|accessdate=2021-10-15
}}</ref>


In the Midwest, the incidence of circumcision had declined to 75 percent, which translates to a genital integrity rate increase to 25 percent or 1 in 4 boys having intact foreskins.<ref name="jacobson2021" /> The previous report from 2010 was one boy in five being intact, so this in an increase of 25 percent in the rate of intactness for the Midwest.
In the Midwest, the incidence of circumcision had declined to 75 percent, which translates to a genital integrity rate increase to 25 percent or 1 in 4 boys having intact foreskins.<ref name="jacobson2021" /> The previous report from 2010 was one boy in five being intact, so this in an increase of 25 percent in the rate of intactness for the Midwest.
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