51–60 of 108 posts
Let's just say that this squatting thing really does have all the benefits that the article says it does. Does is occur to anyone else that instead of squatting precariously on a sit toilet, risking a fall and backsplash on the feet, one could simply put a stack of phonebooks or a kiddie stool in front of the toilet, and then put your feet on it while you take a dump? Same angle for the core/legs, but less danger.
Sorry, but I don't know a polite way to ask this. How do you urinate while on a squat toilet without peeing all over your pants?
If your interested in outfitting your own house with something else, http://www.naturesplatform.com/index.html I've tried myself to squat while hiking outdoors and I keep falling over.
I've been balancing on toilet seats for twenty years. I've broken a few, and dislodged my share of toilets from their anchors to considerable expense. The stability, comfort and ease of Nature's Platform is a great relief.
Charlie Walters, M.B.A. Boone, North Carolina
The toilet was never produced.
"My 10-minute routine dropped to a minute ..." Jesus, what the hell is wrong with this guy? Or maybe I'm the freak, but I don't spend ten minutes on the toilet. Usually it takes 30s-2m to do my business. Maybe he should consider a change in diet?
Yeah, it sounds like this guy has some kind of specific problem, which maybe squatting can relieve. I looked him up, assuming he might be an old guy, but he appears to be early-to-mid 20s, meaning that spending ten minutes just to take a crap on a regular basis is not normal.
I was told once that in China, people squat a lot more than in the West. Both for toilet use, but also just for "sitting down" somewhere. Example: I was told that upon seeing a bench, whereas westerners would normally sit on it, a Chinese person will squat on it. This supposedly also makes their legs much stronger. Can anyone confirm this?
Squatting trivia: South Asians do squat in repose, but notice that the heel of the foot is in full contact with the ground. I read somewhere that the typical Westerner, or someone not used to squatting for extended periods, will squat on the balls of their feet. Apparently this can tire you out quickly. I'm embarrassed that I can't quite manage to squat on my heels either, despite being South Asian.
My grandfather, a physicist, had many odd friends. One of them was a Brit who in the 1950's invented a toilet that permitted squatting. He said of the work, "I believe the savages had it right all along." The toilet was never produced.
I do believe I have seen somewhere a flyer by the British National Health Service advocating putting one's feet on a (step)stool in order to achieve a more optimal position when using a traditional toilet. So perhaps his legacy lives on.
(I am too scared to try and google for proof).
Squat toilets are also more sanitary. I'd much prefer public toilets in the US be of the squat variety.
I wonder if this contributes to the higher rates of hepatitis and related illnesses in Asia -- and that in turn to the custom of removing shoes before entering households.
This article speaks the truth. I was traveling in China last year and was averse to pooping in the squat toilets there (they're generally quite filthy). In any case, eventually push came to shove and I had to bite the bullet. It was like an awakening, I had not realized how uncomfortable are our western toilets until this experience.
This article speaks the truth. I was traveling in China last year and was averse to pooping in the squat toilets there (they're generally quite filthy). In any case, eventually push came to shove and I had to bite the bullet. It was like an awakening, I had not realized how uncomfortable are our western toilets until this experience.
In public toilets squat toilets are still more hygienic to use than sitting on the western toilet seats.
Moreover if the flush doesn't work, which usually would be the case, you can always pour a bucket of water.