You may want to sit down for this: The urologist claims that men have been urinating the wrong way all along
- Urologist Dr. Gerald Collins has claimed that sitting to urinate is more efficient
- And one study found that the bladder may not empty properly when urinating in an upright position
Men, it turns out there is a correct way to pee.
And spoiler alert, he’s not standing up.
A top urologist has claimed that men should always sit down to urinate because it is better for their health.
Consultant urological surgeon Dr Gerald Collins dropped the bombshell last week after a study into how men choose to urinate.
A YouGov poll, which surveyed more than 7,000 men from 13 countries, found that 40 percent of German men always sit down to urinate.
A top urologist has claimed that men should always sit down to urinate because it is healthier and more hygienic (file photo)
This compares to only 9 percent of Britons and 10 percent of Americans.
And now Mr. Collins, who works at Alexandra Hospital, a private hospital in Cheshire, has argued that the Germans were right.
Speak against The Telegraphsaid M. Collins he believes the way humans urinate probably evolved as a matter of convenience and circumstance.
“The bottom line is if you’re on a golf course and you have to squeeze behind a tree, you get away with it,” he said.
“While if you crouch and drop your pants, it could be a much more awkward scenario.”
But that doesn’t mean it’s the best way health-wise.
The urologist said sitting is “probably the most efficient” way to urinate, as researchers in the Netherlands found in 2014 that a sitting position makes it easier for your bladder to “empty more quickly and completely.”
The researchers at Leiden University Medical Center say this is because the pelvic and spinal muscles are completely relaxed when they sit down, making urination easier.
However, when you stand up, those muscles are activated and the tension can cause not all of the urine to leave the bladder.
Sitting, the study says, is especially beneficial for people with lower urinary tract problems and an enlarged prostate — both problems that can get worse with age.
Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) affects most men at some point in life, with 80 percent of those over 80 living with the condition.
BPH is where the prostate gland and surrounding tissue expand, blocking the urethra and making urination more difficult.
And if the bladder doesn’t empty properly, men with BPH can get bladder stones, urinary tract infections, and kidney infections — so sitting down to urinate is recommended.
In Germany, there are signs in many public toilets warning men to sit down when they urinate – often to maintain cleanliness.
But despite 62 percent of German men choosing to sit down to urinate “most” or “every” time, they are still mocked for it.
Those who choose to sit are called “Sitzpinklers,” meaning seated looters.
The term is an offensive slur, aimed at men who are considered “asshole or effeminate.”