Circumcision in the UK/EU

This topic came about in a Facebook Group that I belong to with American Expats. They were talking about the case of Chase Hironimus, who was 4 years old and a judge ordered that he be circumcised in Florida. I don't want to debate if it is wrong or right here. One thing I thought was that many Americans would not realise that most Europeans are not circumcised. Also many of my readers are Americans married to Americans so perhaps they will have never experienced it.


In the 19th century, it was thought that it was better to be circumcised for hygienic reasons. So in the US and in the UK, men were circumcised despite of their religious faith. It fell out of favour in the UK while the NHS was being created and the country was rebuilding itself, most doctors could not justify the procedure with the limited resources at hand so the rates fell.


Now in the UK and the rest of Europe, generally boys are circumcised if they are Jewish or Muslim. In Christianity, the baptism replaced this covenant with God, so circumcision was no longer required. Now it is only used as a last resort on boys for issues with bladder infections and the other issues. Also this is deemed cosmetic and not funded by the NHS unless done for medical reasons. Six percent of males over the age of 15 are circumcised in the UK and less than 20% for Europe.

The US responded differently after the war and began to prosper. The jobs that many were getting offered full private healthcare so this helped increase the rates of circumcision in the US. It became one of the most common procedures in the US.

When I was looking up data for this post, it seems that the rate of circumcision has been declining in the US as well. Rates were about 55-57% in 2012 and seems to be falling by 1% per year. WHO says that 75% of males over the age of 15 are circumcised in the US.

I just thought that it might not be something you knew about.

All the Best!



American to Britain