Using your phone on the toilet stinks

Sitting on the pot for too long increases the risk for rectal prolapse and haemorrhoids

- Melinda Wenner Moyer

I love browsing TikTok while I am doing my business. Will this give me constipation or haemorrhoids?

For many, bathroom breaks double as screen-time breaks. People text friends, read the news and scroll through social media. But doctors warn that the habit may be harmful.

In a study published in September, for instance, researchers surveyed 125 colonoscopy patients at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston about their bathroom habits.

Two-thirds said they had used a smartphone on the toilet at least once, with most saying they had done so at least once a week. The smartphone users also had a 46 per cent increased risk for haemorrhoids — inflamed and swollen tissues and blood vessels in the lower rectum and anus.

“The next Reel, the next TikTok starts playing automatically”, causing people to linger on the toilet for too long, putting extended pressure on the rectal tissues, said Dr Trisha Pasricha, a gastroenterologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and a coauthor of the study.

Although little other research has been conducted on the topic, doctors say haemorrhoids may not be the only reason to think twice about using your phone on the commode.

POTENTIAL HEALTH RISKS