Moms of intact sons?

I was born in Ohio and my parents didn't circumcise me! High-five!

Although it would be unusual it is entirely possible your son's foreskin is retractable already. As long as it isn't causing him any pain or visible damage, I think you'd be okay to leave it alone still.

Its certainly not a problem that would require circumcision, so don't let anyone (not even a doctor) talk you into it.

Remember: an uncircumcised penis requires no special attention from the parent.

I've tried to answer as best I can, but obviously I'm not a doctor and not a parent, so if you're in doubt I suggest you just ask your doctor.

(edit: how the hell does my answer get a thumbs down?!)

I'd leave it alone. I would only bother to clean it *if* he happened to get poop under it, and then I would just use plain water. My 5-year-old has had some very unpleasant problems from soap residue and I haven't washed him with soap for a couple of years. He's had no problems since. No infections or odors or anything of that nature. (He's been retractable since he was 18 months old a doctor forced his foreskin back. He started pulling it back himself a couple weeks later.) He just pulls it back for a couple seconds in the bath and that's it. Honestly, at that age there isn't really a whole lot to wash away under there. I mean, there's no leftover semen or anything like that, and the only time my son has had a noticeable amount of smegma is when soap or bubble bath irritated his delicate skin down there. After a couple of days of rinsing it away he was fine.

Anyway, I think the whole "keep it clean or else" thing is way overblown. The only time my older son has had any foreskin related problems is when I tried too hard to keep it clean, and judging by the number of questions on here from intact men who say "I don't know why my penis hurts. I scrub under my foreskin several times a day!" (or something to that effect) I'd have to say that a lot of men suffer for no damn good reason.

Well, maybe my answer was a bit overblown. lol I just wouldn't worry too much about keeping him clean. The intact penis is self-cleaning, like the vagina. It has its own little way of pushing out invading germs. :-)

It's unusual for his foreskin to be retractable on its own so early. But as long as it's not causing any problems and doesn't look red or irritated, then it's probably best to leave it alone. It doesn't really need any "additional" care at his age anyway.

Some guys have short foreskins - some so short it almost seems like they don't have any. Maybe your son just happens to have a short foreskin so during an erection, it just pulls back on its own.

No...the new 'rule' is that there is no need to pull it back. I believe i read that it is not necessary until he is about 5. My son is circumcised, so i dont have experience with what you are going through. I would call your sons doctor and ask what he recommends. But for the most part, i do know that pulling it back shouldnt happen until your son is able to do it himself. As far as a messy poop goes, wipe him good and maybe just put him in a bath to thourogly clean his southern area.

Hope i helped a bit!

Yeah the advice is to just leaver him alone. A lot of boys can't retract their skin in until puberty - this is perfectly normal too.

The American Academy of Paediactrics have some guidelines for parents:

http://www.cirp.org/library/normal/aap/

There is so much less work to do if you don't injure him - that goes without saying. Why anyone would circumcise, I don't know. Children will be happier and healthier just being left alone.

I have two intact boys. One is almost three and his skin retracts. I never retract it to clean it. The older one's skin does not retract yet.

I don't think there is any need to do it. I'd say just leave it alone and he'll be OK.

Great choice about leaving him intact! :)

There's no need to retract it. Just don't use any soap or anything to clean him. Just plain water will do. Just leave it be. Kudos to you for leaving your little one intact. He'll thank you for it some day!

Hi,

I live in Britain and have 3 sons.

I was told that there is no longer any need to pull foreskin back to clean under it.

yes pull it back gentle and clean it with a wipe especially if he has a messy poop