Question about retracting foreskin & hygiene

[richmondmom]

I have 2 young boys, both intact, and my older one (3 1/2) is now able to retract his foreskin (much to his amazement and delight!). Up until now we have just left his penis alone but now that he is able to retract the foreskin, should we be pulling it back to clean it during bath time? I know that during puberty this is important for good hygiene (i.e., he should learn to do this himself in the shower) but I am not sure what the protocol is for a young child.

Thanks!

[Pandora114]

Let him play with it in the tub it'll get clean that way.

[calngavinsmom]

Hi there. Yeah, my son who is 4 1/2, is just newly retractile too. I know what you mean about it being a delight! I thought Cal was going to show everyone his "purple thing" That was an interesting conversation on private parts

From what I have read, until puberty, there is still no need to retract to clean. I just let Cal know he could do it if he wanted to, but to be sure to put his foreskin back when he is done washing/playing with/examining it to keep it clean. I know there are other reasons to replace the foreskin after retracting it, but he understands the "to keep it clean" explanation so that is what we are going with for now.

Congrats to your little guy

Take care,
Tara

[glongley]

Most of the sources (medical handouts and journal articles) I have run across that mention frequency of cleaning, say only "occasionally" or "once a week" before puberty, then after puberty "regularly" or "daily" (assuming comfrotable retractability is present, and the boy is developmentally ready to do it himself and follow instructions). If he likes to play with and retract it in the tub (when the water is clean), that should be all that is necessary. On the other hand, if he is not interested, or resistant right now, I wouldn't worry too much about it. I think occasional bathtime teaching about how to clean the foreskin, in simple, age-appropriate language could be begun at this point, and reinforced as he continues to develop, so that by puberty (when he's not going to be letting him mom watch him during his bath any more or want to talk much about his private parts), he has all the information he needs to keep his foreskin clean and healthy from there on.

Gillian

[Siana]

Could I ask a question related to foreskin & hygiene, but with regards to disabled or special needs children?

There's a local mom who didn't circ, but later her son was diagnosed with some disability. She now almost regrets it, because it MAY be challenging to teach her son to clean properly. She said she has a friend in a similar situation that just had to (my stress) have her son circumsized at age 5.

I guess I'm having trouble articulating my thoughts on this.

If people with disabled kids didn't think of the foreskin as disposible, they wouldn't contemplate circ. in order to avoid the perceived possible hassles of cleaning an intact penis. KWIM?

I think the underlying fear is the possible proposition of cleaning or aiding a person to clean his penis. It's simply a daunting task to many people, and I blame this on the hypersexualization of the penis!

Lend me your thoughts please

[Lula's Mom]

Originally Posted by Siana

There's a local mom who didn't circ, but later her son was diagnosed with some disability. She now almost regrets it, because it MAY be challenging to teach her son to clean properly. She said she has a friend in a similar situation that just had to (my stress) have her son circumsized at age 5.


If people with disabled kids didn't think of the foreskin as disposible, they wouldn't contemplate circ. in order to avoid the perceived possible hassles of cleaning an intact penis. KWIM?

I totally agree, it's the 'disposable' mentality. If he is so mentally and/or physically challenged that he can't be taught to pull back his own foreskin and rinse his penis in the shower, there will be other body parts he has trouble cleaning. Someone else is going to have to make sure his butt is clean, his ears are free of wax, his toes don't have toejam, his bellybutton isn't full of stinky lint, his nose isn't crusty... They cannot and would not think of removing any of those body parts because he can't properly clean them. What's a 2-second rinse of his penis in the grand scheme of things?

[Siana]

You're posts are always so succinct, Kristi. I love reading them

My partner pretty much said the same thing, but I have trouble putting thoughts in to words! (my cop-out is my malabsorbtion issues )

[Microsoap]

Originally Posted by richmondmom

I have 2 young boys, both intact, and my older one (3 1/2) is now able to retract his foreskin (much to his amazement and delight!). Up until now we have just left his penis alone but now that he is able to retract the foreskin, should we be pulling it back to clean it during bath time? I know that during puberty this is important for good hygiene (i.e., he should learn to do this himself in the shower) but I am not sure what the protocol is for a young child.

Thanks!

One thing I would state is not to use soap to clean the glans when the foreskin is pulled back and of course, the inner foreskin now exposed (that remains in contact w/ the glans when the foreskin is pushed back over it). It *could* irritate either the glans or the inner foreskin or both!

I think of it like this... the loose foreskin, or however much is retractable, is like that little cement storm sewer drainage inlet you see in a ditch and imagine a cute racoon in there. The water gets in there anyway because it's an open canal and washes whatever is in there. For intact males, the bath water goes under the loose foreskin and washes the glans. I don't know if that made any sense. If I sit in a bathtub, I *know* water is going under there and it is cleaning the glans before I pull it back myself and clean my penis.

And besides, what's the big deal about taking 2 seconds to pull the foreskin back, or however much is retractable, letting the bath water wash over the glans and the inner foreskin which is now on the outside, and pushing it back over the glans again?