Adult circumcision may have been promoted to prevent venereal disease in WWI, but infant circumcision had already been popularized by “doctors” like John Harvey Kellogg who promoted circumcision as a cure for masturbation in children. During the turn of the century, it was thought that masturbation led to all kids of other health problems like epilepsy and even caused homosexuality. It was assumed that removal of the foreskin would discourage the practice and make it difficult enough to avoid.
Ah, so Dr Kellogg employed more than eating his corn flakes in the war against masturbation! Actually, he seemed to have it in -- or
not -- for all kinds of sex, which he felt drained men's vital energy.* Later in life he bragged in lectures of restraining from sex with his wife for decades. (There's no record of her thoughts on this. From what we know of Dr Kellogg, his restraint might have been actually appreciated by her.)
Apparently, a lot of people bought into his theories, and products. One of his patients named C. W. Post, also a resident of Battle Creek, MI, did more than just appreciate. After introducing a health drink called Postum, he went into the cereal biz himself, creating Post Cereals. Having no sons, he left his business to his daughter, Marjorie Merriweather Post. She became one of the first women to run a major company (General Foods) and the wealthiest woman in the United States at the time. With her husband, financier Edward Francis Hutton, founder of E F Hutton & Co., she produced a daughter named Dina Merrill, a popular actress of the '50s and '60s. She also built a sprawling mansion in Florida called Mar-a-Lago. When she died it was donated to the state, who due to the cost of upkeep, in turn sold it to a New York developer, along with many frustrating encumbrances resulting from the terms of Post's bestowal. The developer, in turn, converted it into a personal residence, resort, golf club and government classified documents storage center.
So, from the fear of sex and masturbation, have come cereal and Mar-a-Lago. And now, apparently, circumcision.
* I musta been indirectly influenced by Dr Kellogg's philosophy. As a teenager and beyond, I too avoided masturbation for long stretches as being detrimental to my health and athletic performance. And every morning I eat my cereal. Ghandi also had a lot to say on this subject. He felt eating meat was harmful for spiritual development. I've been a lifelong vegan wannabe. I occasionally have a steak, but just because I really really like A1 Sauce.