My Guidon.com reports that body language comprises 90% of our communication. For example they point out that in America, the cultural gesture of shaking hands upon greeting is considered the norm and to refuse a handshake is considered a very rude gesture. However, in Saudi Arabia, you can shake a man’s hand after meeting him, but you cannot shake a woman’s hand at all in greeting. Furthermore Asian cultures prefer to bow in lieu of shaking hands as a greeting.
This is true of many other American gestures such as the OK sign, thumbs up, and eye contact.