Popular potty habit almost doubles hemorrhoid risk

Sometimes it’s not the big decisions that impact your health the most. It’s the small, everyday habits that slowly work against you.

Like sitting on the couch for hours, telling yourself you’ll go to bed after just one more episode… only to realize you’ve sacrificed sleep again.

It doesn’t feel like a problem in the moment. In fact, it feels like a way to relax.

But over time, these patterns can quietly damage your body — from your metabolism to your immune system and beyond.

Now, researchers are uncovering one more seemingly “harmless” habit that could increase your risk of a very common and painful condition.

And it all has to do with how you spend your time on the toilet…

A modern habit with old-fashioned consequences

Hemorrhoids (also called piles) are swollen veins that bulge out from the anal or rectal area and can cause pain, itching and bleeding — not to mention the embarrassment that can go hand-in-hand with the condition.

Doctors have long suspected that spending too much time sitting on the toilet may contribute to these painful, grape-like clusters.

After all, while straining due to constipation is a known factor in hemorrhoid development (and has even been shown to link hemorrhoids to stroke), both pressure and time matter.

And any extra time spent sitting on the toilet can add up, increasing pressure on the tissues and veins in the anal region.

In the past, that toilet time might have meant reading the newspaper.

More often today, however, it means staring at a smartphone screen, whether it’s to check the news, scroll social media, answer a text or just pass the time.

And according to research published in the journal PLOS ONE, that shift may be causing more damage than people realize…

Increased toilet time = painful hemorrhoids

That’s because, after comparing colonoscopy results with surveys of bathroom habits from 125 adults, scientists say the findings were hard to ignore.

The researchers found that while about two-thirds of participants used a smartphone sitting on the toilet, this use was linked to a whopping 46% higher risk of hemorrhoids.

And the time participants spent on the toilet was striking as well.

According to the researchers, about 37% of smartphone users admitted to spending more than 5 minutes on the toilet during a single visit. Compare that to just 7.1% of non-users who stayed that long.

In other words, people who brought their phones with them were much more likely to linger.

Interestingly, the study didn’t find that straining during bowel movements explained the difference. Instead, prolonged sitting was shown to be the more important factor.

The researchers’ advice?

When it comes to the bathroom, focus on doing your business and getting back up as quickly as possible.

As senior author of the study, Trisha Pasricha, explained, “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. 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?”

Habits to help you stay hemorrhoid-free

The good news is that toilet scrolling is a risk factor that’s created not by disease, but by distraction, meaning you can do something about it immediately.

First, keep your phone out of the bathroom. That one change alone could top a one-minute bathroom trip from turning into a 10-minute scrolling session.

Second, aim to spend no more than a few minutes on the toilet.

Third, support healthy bowel habits with the basics: drinking enough water, eating plenty of fiber and staying physically active.

If it’s still taking too long to “go” and you’re not sneaking your phone into the bathroom, consider adding support to improve issues of constipation.

Supplements to support a healthy colon and regular bowel movements include:

• Ancient aloe – Aloe naturally stimulates your bowels and softens your stools for easier elimination.
• Inulin – Inulin is a prebiotic that supports the natural production of beneficial bacteria in your colon and helps restore balance and promote gut health.
• Potassium – The mineral that promotes muscle contractions and helps keep stool hydrated for comfortable elimination.
• Cascara sagrada – This is the herb you need to restore your natural urge to “go” for normal, healthy bowel movements.
• Magnesium – The mineral that attracts water into stool, stimulates bowel contractions and relaxes muscles that help you go without discomfort.

Finally, don’t forget that sneaky medications are often at the root of bathroom troubles. So your phone might not be the sole culprit behind those dreaded hemorrhoids.

Sources:

Smartphone use on the toilet and the risk of hemorrhoids — PLOS One

Study finds phone use on the toilet may cause painful medical condition — ScienceDaily