Think you know how to poop? Think again.
Because our modern toilet habits can prevent us from emptying our bowels properly, a top medical expert has revealed.
According to the Dorset-based NHS surgeon Dr Karan Rajan, sitting on the toilet can cause your colon to kink, causing you to congest.
Instead, leaning forward and squatting provides a “smoother exit.”
He dropped the bombshell on TikTok, in a nearly 150,000-viewed video: “Focus on the corners, especially the angle between your belly and your thighs. Make this as small as possible.’
According to NHS surgeon Dr Karan Rajan, sitting on the toilet can cause your colon to kink, causing you to congest. Instead, leaning forward and squatting provides a “smoother exit.” He dropped the bombshell on TikTok, in a nearly 150,000-viewed video: “Focus on the corners, especially the angle between your belly and your thighs. Make this as small as possible.’ He added, “You can reduce this thigh-torso angle by leaning forward when you release the brown creaks.”
“Combine this with lifting your heels so that you’re leaning on the balls of your feet. This will put you in a slight hip flexion and bring your knees slightly above your hips,’ he suggested. He shared animations demonstrating the technique, adding, “The puborectalis — the muscle that wraps around the rectum — is now relaxed, straightening the rectum and allowing you to get out more smoothly.”
He added, “You can reduce this thigh-torso angle by leaning forward when you release the brown cracks.”
“Combine this with lifting your heels so that you’re leaning on the balls of your feet.
“This will put you in slight hip flexion and bring your knees slightly above your hips.”
Alternatively, to achieve the slight elevation, feet can be placed on a rolled towel, he suggested.
“This combo move unlocks an important skill,” he added, sharing animations demonstrating the technique.
“The puborectalis — the muscle that wraps around the rectum — is now relaxed, which straightens the rectum and allows you to get out more smoothly,” he said.
Research has also suggested that squatting is a superior technique for emptying the bowels.
According to a 2012 study published in the journal Digestive Diseases and Sciences, it took an average of 51 seconds for those sitting on a 12-inch toilet to release their bowels.
Meanwhile, those who sat recorded an average time of 130 seconds.
2019, researchers at Ohio State University in the US also found that using a bathroom stool can help.
Analyzing more than 1,000 bowel movements, the researchers found that 90 percent of people who used bowel adjustment devices — known as Squatty Pottys — strained less, and 71 percent reported faster bowel movements.
Fewer users also reported feeling like they still needed to go to the toilet.
Our modern toilet habits can keep us from emptying our bowels properly, Dr. Karan Rajan revealed in a TikTok video that has been viewed hundreds of thousands of times
Normal bowel movements vary from person to person, advises the NHS.
But you shouldn’t pass less than three stools a week or more than three a day, it adds.
Crutches should alsobe soft and easy to pass,” the health service adds.
It’s because the largest-ever survey of British bowel movements revealed in April that one in 400 Britons poop less than once a week.
It broke down toilet habits in the UK and found that 13 per cent of people are affected by their bowel and gut health to such an extent that it affects their daily lives.
Another strong figure showed that nearly a quarter of women are constipated (23 percent), compared to just 13 percent of men.