The Link Between Constipation and Toilets

The connection between constipation and toilets is not something new. Many enlightened medical professionals and health experts have known and written about it.

Dr F.A. Hornibrook, in his book "The Culture of the Abdomen", published in 1933:

Man's natural attitude during [elimination] is a squatting one, such as may be observed amongst field workers or natives.

Fashion, in the guise of the ordinary water closet, forbids the emptying of the lower bowel in the way Nature intended. Now in this act of [elimination] great strains are imposed on all the internal organs…

It is no overstatement to say that the adoption of the squatting attitude would in itself help in no small measure to remedy the greatest physical vice of the white race, the constipation that has become a contentment.

Chiropractor Dr William Welles, in his article "The Hidden Crime of the Porcelain Throne":

The design of the modern-day toilet was created with absolute disregard for the anatomy of the human body.

On the conventional Western toilet, pressure is exerted inside the abdomen by pushing the diaphragm down in such a way as to push all the organs of the body downwards, causing them to sag (prolapsus), and creating dysfunction of the ileocecal valve.

The abdominal muscles are left totally unsupported, as we have said, and the body suffers the consequences.

H. Aaron, in his book "Our Common Ailment", published in 1938:

When the thighs are pressed against the abdominal muscles in this (squatting) position, the pressure within the abdomen is greatly increased, so that the rectum is more completely emptied.

Our toilets are not constructed according to physiological requirements. Toilet designers can do a good deal for people if they will study a little physiology and construct seats intended for proper [elimination].

Professor Alexander Kira, Cornell University's Center for Housing and Environmental Studies, conducted a seven-year study of the design of the modern bathroom.

In his 1976 book "The Bathroom", he quoted numerous Western scientists who have deplored the use of the modern toilet. One of these was from Dr Henry L. Bockus, the author of the standard textbook "Gastro-Enterology", published in 1944:

... The ideal posture for [evacuation] is the squatting position, with the thighs flexed upon the abdomen. In this way the capacity of the abdominal cavity is greatly diminished and intra-abdominal pressure is increased, thus encouraging expulsion."

I have always been told that the proper way to eliminate is by squatting. This is the reason why our ancestors did not develop the numerous diseases that plague our body (via the colon) today. - Dr Akilah El, ND PhD, Naturopathic Doctor

Want to see a modern tragedy? Go look at your toilet seat. The worst thing for long-term health happens while sitting instead of squatting in the bathroom.

Why do so many of us suffer from constipation, heartburn, low back pain, hernias, hemorroids, colon cancers, and overeating due to mal-absorption of nutrients? The answer is our ridiculous insistence upon 'civility' on the toilet, which stagnates our natural 'sewer system'.

Resultantly, our colonic organs become encrusted with toxic matter which renders them ineffective, weak, and prone to disease. Long-term health pivots upon the fitness of our digestive and elimination organs. - Steve Ilg, Author, Athlete, Yoga Teacher

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