Medical Q: Arthrosis in Asians

Factual Questions
1

This is a question for the medical dopers about studies done, but I would also take some personal anecdotes from dopers with experience in Asian cultures.

First, in most Asian cultures (and Native American ones), people have been sitting cross-legged (Lotus style) for dozen of generations. (No, my question isn’t about how you manage to sit flat Lotus style, that’s training, I know).

Second, in many Asian countries, like India (and some Native American populations, like Inuits), people squat on their heels instead of sitting on the ground.

Now, my question, is not how people do that (we had a thread some time ago on how people manage to balance when squatting - that’s not my problem.) My question is instead:

According to my laymen’s knowledge of orthopedics, both positions are very bad for the knee, because they overstretch the ligaments (I believe they are called). I know that I have the beginning of arthrosis in my knees, and it hurts me to sit or squat for long. I also know that bending my knees more than 90 degrees is not good for them. So sitting European style in a chair should be better for knees than sitting lotus-style.

On the other hand, I often hear that people who have been sitting Lotus-style since they were small find sitting on European chairs uncomfortable, and that their “bones” have somehow adapted to this different style.

I have never heard of any studies on how much arthrose* occurs in Asians compared to Westerners. I can think of three possibilites:

  1. Asians have a higher rate of arthrose, or earlier onset, because these customs are damaging their knees. We don’t hear about this much because of cultural acceptance/ tradition of not speaking about pain / everybody has it, so nobody realizes it 's because of tradition

  2. The bones and ligaments actually do adapt, and Asians have the same /lower rate of arthrose as Westerners.

  3. The rate /age of onset is lower or the same as Europe/USA, but for other reasons, i.e. the widespread obesity and lack of movement causes most cases in Europe/US, the sitting/squatting causes most cases in Asia.

So: any studies done, any medical /doctors opinons, any anecdotes?

  • German orthopedists differentiate between Arthrose - degeneration of the cartilage puffer between joints, especially common in knees and hips with advancing age - and Arthritis - the acute inflammation of joints, but the english wiki links to general term of Osteoarthritis. so I’m unsure how it’s called /classified in English.
2

Good question, although american, I prefer to sit with my legs folded but not a full or half lotus. I do it sitting up in bed, or on a sofa. I find sitting with the feet flatly on the floor in a chair uncomfortable for long periods of time. i am currently sitting crosslegged in my bed working on a laptop on a hospital bed table.

Unfortunately, the cartillage in my right knee is pretty much entirely gone, and I have other issues that mean I do not get down on the floor at all as I pretty much cant get back up unassisted and using a squat toilet is totally out of the question.

3

Using one bump…