Anti-circumcision group offers new research findings

Routine circumcision of newborns destroys nerve endings in an area where they are more concentrated than in any other place in the body, anti-circumcision groups say.

A Canadian researcher, Dr. John Taylor, said the amount of tissue loss is much more than parents realize from pre-operative counseling.

Proponents of circumcision say it greatly reduces the incidence of urinary tract infections and sexually transmitted diseases. It also makes hygiene easier, decreases the chance of penile cancer and may help prevent cervical cancer.

However, Morris Sorrells, a 30-year pediatrician with the Pediatric Ambulatory Department of Alemeda County, said the incidence of infections and cancer is so low that the infliction of pain on newborn babies is not justified.