In 2007, the World Health Organization began to promote male circumcision as an HIV preventative, based on the results of just two studies. Some AIDS activists, who have spread the message since the 1980s that condoms are the only surefire way to protect against the virus, were irate, especially after New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg adopted the WHO's message, which had been intended primarily for health authorities in the developing world. Now the WHO has recommitted itself to the strategy, launching a website, malecircumcision.org, that supports circumcision, but also corrects common misconceptions about the practice. A major concern is convincing men in high-risk populations that although circumcision may be a good idea, it is no substitute for wearing a condom. For example, although two studies conducted in Africa found that circumcised men were 60 percent less likely to contract HIV from a woman, there is no evidence that circumcision provides any protection at all to men who have sex with men. And if HIV-positive men are circumcised and have sex shortly thereafter with a woman, her risk of contracting the virus actually increases. Thus, the WHO is now recommending that men be tested for HIV pre-circumcision, and that HIV-positive men not undergo the procedure.The WHO also provides this interesting map of circumcision rates around the globe. African men are actually already more likely to be circumcised than other men, but sure enough, HIV rates are highest in the central sub-Saharan nations where circumcision rates are lowest. Meanwhile, in the U.S., about 60 percent of boys and men are circumcised, but in 2003, the practice dropped to a postwar low, with only about 55 percent of baby boys undergoing the procedure. I'm pretty certain, though, that new parents on the fence about circumcision will be more likely to decide in favor as the WHO continues to publicize its support for the practice.
--Dana Goldstein
--Dana Goldstein 
