Defying science, American parents are turning away from male circumcision

Article here. Excerpt:

'Circumcision has become an increasingly fraught topic over the past few decades, as new American parents have grown uncomfortable with the idea of severing a piece of their child’s body, minor though it may be. This is understandable from an ethical perspective: A newborn baby cannot consent to such an unalterable act. Anti-circumcision advocates argue that it is better to forgo the procedure in infancy and allow the child to make his own decision later on. As a result of this intuitive reasoning, rates of circumcision have fallen from about 85% in 1965 to roughly 58% in 2010, the latest year for which solid data is available.

Parents, however, also have the responsibility to do what’s best for their child, even if that decision causes personal discomfort. And the evidence for the health benefits of circumcision, accumulated over decades of research, is overwhelming.'