We Americans are somewhat especial about our pooping habits . bivouacking stumble aside , there ’s generally only one satisfactory way to go : sitting down . U.S. tourist returning from international trip-up share revulsion stories of bathroom condition in other parts of the world . “ It was a hole in the ground ! ” Sitting to poop is just morecivilizedthan squatting , we tell ourselves . It ca n’t be sanitary to oscillate over a hole .
But we are misguided . Billions of people around the public squat at bathroom time . low-set lavatory arethe normin Asia , the Middle East , and parts of Europe . And for a while now , the pro - low-set squad has been trying to get America on gameboard . proponent of scrunch say seated pooping is not only knockout — it ’s risky to your wellness .
Our bodies certainly are n’t designed for the crapper we apply . The nutrient epithelial duct ends with the rectum , where permissive waste is salt away , and the anus , where it leave the body . The metro between them is slightly kinked , which is what allow you to hold it . Standing up soupcon off the passage . To a lesser extent , sit does the same . This is great when there ’s no residue halt in sight , but when it ’s time to go , you require the transmission channel clear-cut . The crouch positionstraightens out the tube , allow your poop to show itself out . There ’s less straining , which we can all agree is a good thing .
Hemorrhoids are a pretty big trouble in this body politic . By age 50 , approximatelyhalf of Americanshave had them . And the number one cause ( no pun intended ) ? Straining during bowel apparent motion .
But we do n’t have to know this way . A corner industry ofsquat enablershas sprung up in the U.S. It ’s grievous to sit around on your john , say the manufacturers , who offer footstools , and adapters to scrunch up - ify westerly toilets . Their web site blame our sit poopstyle for colon Crab , heart attacks , sexual disfunction , pyrosis , and appendicitis . you may foreclose all these problems , they say , if you just buy what they ’re sell .
David Ling , artificer of theSandun - Evaco toilet converter , promises users “ a lifespan of health benefits ( better tegument , flatter abdomen , reduced toxicity , well mental clearness and reduce risk of disease as a result of a cleaner and healthy colon ) . ” The makers of theSquatty Potty — a footstool with a pot - shaped cutout — claim their merchandise can ease constipation , prevent colon disease , and improve pelvic floor issues . The $ 25 to $ 80 Squatty Potty has been endorsed by Howard Stern , and has inspired the most glittery train wreck of a commercial message we ’ve ever check .
Is there any verity to these title ? Maybe . Some of them . There ’s definitely no evidence that you may get clearer tegument or better abs from a toilet converter , and nobody ’s test the effects of squatting on undefined construct like “ mental lucidity ” and “ toxicity . ” A few studieshaveshown that squat does make poopingeasierandfasterand may reduce the peril of hemorrhoids . The rest of it rest to be see .
