Roper
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Hemorrhoids are veins in the anus and rectum that have become swollen and inflamed. In mild cases, they can cause itching. In severe cases, they cause excruciating pain and bleeding. Hemorrhoids are most common in Europe and the Americas, with over half the population suffering from it at least once in their lives. Hemorrhoids are almost unknown in Africa, Asia, and the Middle Eastern countries. Many doctors and scientists explain that the occurrence, and lack of occurrence, of hemorrhoids is due to sitting on toilets. Many Africans, Asians, and Middle Easterners do not use sitting toilets. Rather, they practice squatting over their toilets or other waste receptacles. This answer is not accepted by the entire medical community. Some doctors say that hemorrhoids are rare in those countries because they have a diet much higher in fiber.
Several studies have been done, however, to support the correlation between sitting while defecating and the occurrence of hemorrhoids. Sitting on a toilet puts extra pressure on the anus and rectum. This extra pressure causes people to strain as they make a bowel movement. This straining is what causes hemorrhoids, and, once they develop, aggravates them, so they are difficult to get rid of. When sitting, the body goes into a natural “continence mode” that prevents the bowels from expelling waste. This is why we strain when we sit on the toilet. When sitting, we often have to hold our breath and push the feces out with our diaphragm. All the pressure causes the veins to swell and become inflamed. Squatting is the natural human position for defecating, but many of us have been trained away from squatting by using the unnatural sitting position. With a little practice, it is possible to switch to squatting and enjoy a hemorrhoid-free life.
 Posted 5395 day ago
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