| Submit your comments on this article |
| -Short Attention Span Theater- |
| Westerners can't squat |
| 2004-10-27 |
| A STUDY aimed at discovering the perfect way to pee has stumbled on a greater problem — Westerners can't squat. A world-first study, which compared the Western loo with a seat to the developing-world squat type, delivered a surprise for researchers. They found volunteers were falling off the toilets because they could not hold a squat position for more than 30 seconds. "We were quite sure squatting would be far superior to the Western toilet position, however we have a problem now ... one third of the population is unable to squat," Professor Ajay Rane said. Prof Rane, head of obstetrics and gynaecology at James Cook University, has spent years studying the perfect pee to help one million Australians — including 300,000 men — who have a weak bladder. His study was conducted over two years using 100 women. It compared peeing styles using the squatting position and the "perfect" position on the conventional toilet, which involved volunteers putting their feet flat on the floor and leaning forward. Equipment called a uroflowmeter was attached to each toilet to collect data such as how fast volunteers could urinate, their maximum speed, average speed, how long it took to attain maximum speed and the volume of urine. Patients were then scanned to determine how much urine was left in the bladder. Prof Rane said data found there was little difference between the two toilets when it came to doing the perfect pee. But he said the study ran into problems when it was found one-third of the women couldn't squat for longer than 30 seconds without falling over. He said further studies were conducted on 240 school children and this found a person's ability to squat dropped off about the age of 12, when a "stiffness" set in. Prof Rane said there was anecdotal evidence squatting could help improve bowel function, reduce the incidence of haemorrhoids and prevent bladder dysfunction in men and women. Squatting could also help with prostate problems, he said. "It should be encouraged, even if you don't want to use it for the purposes of toileting," Prof Rane said. "People might think this is funny, but there's much to it than just fun, really." A second study involving 500 people is planned for next year. |
| Posted by:tipper |
| #19 You can keep the squat toilets, thanks. I prefer to relax on the throne, rather than expend energy holding a position. The squat toilet is just nasty, it's the worst thing about living in Asia. Most places have real toilets, but some don't and the realization that you're going to actually have to use a squat toilet is not pleasant. |
| Posted by: gromky 2004-10-28 2:21:54 AM |
| #18 Not only do we not know squat, we don't know that we don't know squat. Huh?? |
| Posted by: Constitutional Individualist 2004-10-27 5:49:29 PM |
| #17 "People might think this is funny, but there’s much to it than just fun, really." Actually, what's funny is the fact that someone is willing to waste money on this kind of thing. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2004-10-27 4:32:48 PM |
| #16 God wants every American to have a big tank, a 12 gallon single flusher! It's our birthright and they are made in America by good unionzed workers at where else American standard! Ever Man a King and for every King an American Standard Throne! Long live the easy flusher! |
| Posted by: HHH 2004-10-27 4:23:08 PM |
| #15 Unrelated to squatting, aren't Americans wealthy enough to finally afford tall toilets? The typical American Standard, even the illegal big tank Canadian production toilets are still way too low. They seem to be designed for children and people under five feet tall, with really narrow buttocks. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2004-10-27 10:42:20 AM |
| #14 Back during the Vietnam War, US troops noticed the "Charlie squatting in the bush" phenomenon. Having been raised from birth to what you might call "deep squatting" or "full squatting", with the buttocks resting on the heels, as adults they were able to do this for extended periods of time, something most westerners couldn't do, or learn to do. It was also noted that this bowed their legs slightly, which meant that they couldn't handle long distance running as well as some straight-legged westerners. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2004-10-27 10:38:07 AM |
| #13 Westerners also have an aversion to open pit cess pools. |
| Posted by: ed 2004-10-27 10:27:28 AM |
| #12 Do they think the world will switch over to the perfect method once they find it? Who cares if it's perfect or not? This is insane on so many levels I thought for sure it was scrappleface. |
| Posted by: RJ Schwarz 2004-10-27 10:15:55 AM |
| #11 I guess MooreOn was right, "We don't know squat" after all. |
| Posted by: Jack is Back! 2004-10-27 10:15:52 AM |
| #10 How are you supposed to do crossword puzzles like that?! |
| Posted by: BH 2004-10-27 10:15:19 AM |
| #9 Lotta time on your hands there, Perfesser? |
| Posted by: tu3031 2004-10-27 8:49:24 AM |
| #8 Hmmm....new meaning for Squatters Rights. |
| Posted by: Don 2004-10-27 8:48:39 AM |
| #7 I stand for standing. |
| Posted by: raptor 2004-10-27 8:45:48 AM |
| #6 If the squatter is called a "bomb sight". How come so many guys miss? |
| Posted by: RN 2004-10-27 8:08:45 AM |
| #5 "Prof Rane, head of obstetrics and gynaecology at James Cook University, has spent years studying the perfect pee to help one million Australians – including 300,000 men – who have a weak bladder." Aussies can stand (or sit) proudly -- this is far more useful than what we Americans get out of UC Berkeley. |
| Posted by: Tom 2004-10-27 8:02:33 AM |
#4 He said further studies were conducted on 240 school children and this found a person’s ability to squat dropped off about the age of 12, when a "stiffness" set in. See - that's the problem with education today! By the time kids graduate, a lot of them can't do squat!! ;) |
| Posted by: MrO 2004-10-27 6:56:34 AM |
| #3 Having lived for years in Asia with a bad knee that prevents me squatting, I have experimented with a number of techniques to use squat toliets None of which solved the problem (and without going into how diarohea and alcohol exacerbate it). A study on the best way to use a squat toliet, for those who can't squat would be a important advancement in human understanding. Not to mention a valuable public service. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2004-10-27 3:37:16 AM |
| #2 There are so many things wrong with this. |
| Posted by: beer_me 2004-10-27 2:42:48 AM |
| #1 [boggle] |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2004-10-27 1:48:55 AM |