If you’re someone who sneaks off to the bathroom for a little phone time, you could be upping your odds of developing hemorrhoids.
A recent survey suggests Americans spend two full days a year scrolling on the toilet. Now, new research shows that people who bring their phone to scroll social media are 46% more likely to get hemorrhoids than those who don’t.
Hemorrhoids—swollen veins in the lower rectum that can cause pain, itching, and bleeding—are often linked to straining. But lingering on the toilet itself has now been identified as a bigger risk. Research published last week found phone users spend five times longer on the toilet, which increases pressure on anal tissue and raises the likelihood of haemorrhoids. About 54% of respondents reported reading the news, while 44% scrolled social media.
Hemorrhoids affect about half of U.S. adults over 50, leading to nearly 4 million doctor or ER visits annually and more than $800 million in healthcare spending. While most cases resolve on their own, some require medical treatment or even surgery.
The study, published in PLOS One, focused on participants over 45. But in a related study of college students, nearly all admitted to bringing their phones to the toilet. Of course, bathroom reading long predates smartphones—but flipping through a shampoo bottle or “toilet book” rarely leads to the half-hour distractions common with Instagram or TikTok.
How often have you finished your business, washed your hands, and then realized you’ve been sitting and scrolling for far longer than you intended? Researchers recommend leaving the phone outside the bathroom altogether—or, if that’s unthinkable, limiting yourself to “two TikToks at most.”
“This study bolsters advice to people in general to leave the smartphones outside the bathroom and to try to spend no more than a few minutes to have a bowel movement,” Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center gastroenterologist Trisha Pasricha said in a statement. “If it’s taking longer, ask yourself why. Was it because having a bowel movement was really so difficult, or was it because my focus was elsewhere?”
