According to polls, 87 percent of people use their phones in the bathroom. That may be why one in six people’s phones is contaminated with harmful bacteria like E. coli or MRSA. On average, a smartphone is 20 times dirtier than a public toilet seat. That makes disinfecting them important for staying healthy.
While 87 percent of people use them in the bathroom, leaving them outside can help them stay cleaner. New research has found another reason not to use your phone while going to the bathroom. Smartphone use in the bathroom can raise the risk of hemorrhoids.
The bathroom has always been a private space for “me time.” It gets a person away from kids and talking family. It used to be a place for reading, crossword puzzles or thinking. Nowadays, apps are designed to keep us scrolling for as long as possible, and that is increasing the risk of hemorrhoids more than our old bathroom break habits.
“The entire business model of these social media apps is to distract us, make us lose track of time and addict us to the algorithm,” said Dr. Trisha Pasricha, the study’s senior author, a gastroenterologist and director of the Gut-Brain Research Institute at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. “We’re just now understanding how much smartphones impact lots of other factors in our lives.”
The study used surveys of people who were undergoing colonoscopies about their toilet habits, fiber intake, exercise routines and straining. The researchers found that 66 percent of the people scrolled on their phones on the toilet. That’s fewer people than in the general population. But the people in the study were older, less likely to be constantly glued to their phones. Around 73 percent of phone users spent more than five minutes on the toilet. Only seven percent of non-phone users spent that long. And using the phone on the toilet was linked to a 46 percent higher risk of hemorrhoids.
Sitting is linked to hemorrhoids. And the shape of a toilet seat puts pressure on areas that increase the risk of hemorrhoids. Everyone in the study was over 45 years old, in the age range for getting a colonoscopy and therefore eligible for the study. The researchers believe their findings are the same for people under 45. But the information may be more important as younger people often spend more time on their phones.
“Leave your smartphone outside because when you go in you have just one job, and you should focus on that job,” said Dr. Pasricha. “If the magic hasn’t happened within five minutes, you should get up and go. Take a breather and come back.”
