Search icon

Health

28th Nov 2023

Doctor warns you should never sit on the toilet for more than 10 minutes

Joseph Loftus

Time to vacate the throne

Well folks, while some of you might love nothing more than unwinding with a solid 45 minute session perched upon your plastic seat of state, one doctor has warned that you should never do so for more than ten minutes.

I know, what a grinch, but Dr Roshini Raj said that sitting on the loo for extended periods of time can cause serious complications that you probably don’t want to develop.

A recent study, carried out by NordVPN, found that a massive 65% of 9,800 aduts take their phone with them when they’re going to the toilet.

In every country which was surveyed, 26-41-year-olds confessed to taking their phone to the toilet the most, with Gen-Zers (18-25) coming in close second. Have that.

The survey also found that Spaniards are most likely to use their phones on the toilet with a massive 80% of those surveyed doing so.

But while it may sound like all fun and biological games, Roshini Raj, who’s a gastroenterologist at NYU Langone, explained that sitting on the toilet for longer than needed will likely cause haemorrhoids and sometimes even swollen veins in the anus.

Raj did, however, explain that this isn’t entirely your fault, and some of it could be down to the shape of the toilet, saying: “So the actual anorectal area is hanging a little bit lower than the part that’s supported — your thighs.

“Just by that position, gravity is causing everything to hang a bit, and that is causing pressure on the veins.

“So even if you’re not straining, if you’re just sitting there thinking of something else, doing something else, there is some pressure being applied to those veins.”

Dr. Raj added: “I see a lot of people who get food poisoning or catch different things by not having good hygiene practices in the bathroom.

“I just think generally speaking, if you’re on the toilet having a bowel movement or trying to have a movement, you shouldn’t be using your fingers on anything else.”

Have a good week readers.

Related links:

Topics: