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Fitness & Health

22nd May 2016

There’s a very good reason why you shouldn’t use your phone on the toilet

Alan Loughnane

It’s down to science.

Whilst many of you probably set aside more than a few minutes a day to contemplate your existence on the toilet, it turns out it’s a bad idea.

You should only use the toilet for pooping and not for thinking back over situations in your life you’d do differently or scrolling through Facebook on your phone.

When you sit on your throne, you should take care of your business immediately and then relinquish your throne according to Men’s Health.

Gregory Thorkelson, M.D, a psychiatrist in the department of gastroenterology, hepatology, and nutrition at the University of Pittsburgh has said that you should keep your toilet sessions to less than 10-15 minutes.

When your body decides that you need to poop, it comes following peristalsis waves along your bowel which spark a feeling of needing to go to the bathroom.

But, if you’re scrolling on your phone and not concentrating on taking care of your business, this feeling can subside and your stool will back up slightly into your colon…which is an absolutely lovely sentence to have to write.

disgusted

But this can make it much more difficult to go to the toilet according to Dr. Thorkelson, and is known as reverse peristalsis.

“Your colon extracts some of the fluid from your stool, which can contribute to constipation,” he said speaking to Men’s Health.

So basically, your colon dries up your stool which in turn can cause constipation and even haemorrhoids if you try to “force” the issue too much.

Haemorrhoids are swollen veins around the anus which are extremely painful…we imagine.

To avoid this horrific medical condition you can simply not use your phone on the toilet or if this is beyond the realms of possibility, there’s some other things you can try.

We recommend increasing your doses of fibre, or downing a few energy drinks (do NOT do this), then your waste will probably walk right on out of your nether regions… although with all the caffeine and sugar in those drinks it might be better and safer to try the healthier fibre option.