A modern medical dilemma is emerging from an age-old fixture: the toilet.
Gastroenterologist Dr. Trisha Pasricha of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) updated a classic medical inquiry for the “TikTok era,” investigating whether the pervasive habit of taking smartphones into the bathroom contributes to one of the most common gastrointestinal complaints: haemorrhoids.
Her findings, presented at the satirical yet scientifically rigorous Ig Nobel Awards, were clear: smartphone use on the toilet was associated with a 46% increased risk of having haemorrhoids.
The research, published in the journal PLOS One, surveyed 125 adults undergoing routine colonoscopy at BIDMC about their diet, activity levels, and, crucially, their toilet habits.
The data revealed startling statistics:
- Two-thirds of participants admitted to using their phones while on the toilet.
- Smartphone users were five times more likely to sit for more than five minutes per trip compared to non-users.
According to Dr. Pasricha, the phone itself is the driving behavior. “Time sort of slows down when you’re scrolling, and people don’t realize just how much longer they’re sitting there,” she explained. The extended sitting time places prolonged, unnecessary pressure on the vascular cushions at the end of the GI tract, causing them to engorge and become symptomatic hemorrhoids.
While the topic generates chuckles, haemorrhoids are a major health issue, ranking as the third most common reason people see their doctors and costing the health system hundreds of millions annually.
Dr. Pasricha, who is also writing a book titled You’ve Been Pooping All Wrong, explained the essential function of hemorrhoid cushions: they are a normal part of the body that serves as a barrier, helping the body distinguish between gas, liquid, and solid stool. They become painful and symptomatic only when they become engorged.
The study serves as a contemporary update to a 1989 Lancet study that found an association between haemorrhoids and reading the newspaper on the toilet. Now, in the age of instant digital distraction, the same principle holds true: The longer you sit, the higher your risk.
To protect your rectal health, Dr. Pasricha and her colleagues offer simple advice:
- Establish a Time Limit: Doctors recommend spending no more than a couple of minutes on the toilet.
- Leave the Phone Behind: Keep the bathroom a device-free zone to eliminate the primary catalyst for lingering.
- Normalize the Conversation: Dr. Pasricha advocates for normalizing discussions about gut health, stressing that “if you can’t eat the food you love and poop it out comfortably, you don’t have a quality of life.”
In short: when nature calls, answer quickly. Your scrolling can wait.