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Acton was influenced by French physician [[Claude François Lallemand]], who recommended [[circumcision]] to prevent spermatorrhea (excessive, involuntary ejaculation), which was then believed to be a disease. Acton quoted Lalemand in his own books.
Acton later devoted his efforts to the suppression of child [[masturbation]], which was then thought to produce phthisis, blindness, insanity, and other disorders.[[Robert Darby]] (2003) wrote:<blockquote>William Acton's opinion that childhood ought to be a period of "absolute sexual quiescence" was an important influence here. If any manifestation of sexual capacity before puberty was pathological rather than normal, it had to be eliminated, and corrective surgery, including [[circumcision]], was one of the usual means.<ref>{{REFjournal |last=Darby |first=Robert |init= |author-link=Robert Darby |etal=no |title=The masturbation taboo and the rise of routine male circumcision: a review of the historiography |trans-title= |language= |journal=J Soc Hist |location= |date=2003 |season=Spring |volume= |issue=27 |article= |page= |pages=737-57 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/history/darby4/ |archived= |quote= |accessdate=2022-05-30}}</ref></blockquote>
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* [[United Kingdom]]
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[[Category:UK]]