If you extend your time on the toilet, you might be harming your body.
Toilet visits can sometimes be prolonged due to browsing social media, or simply struggling to ‘go’ comfortably.
However, spending too much time seated on the toilet could lead to more than just numb legs.
According to a physician, it might actually be detrimental to your health.
As many individuals opt to watch shows, videos, and tweet while on the toilet, this habit has gradually become more common.
In a survey conducted by Vioguard, Inc., it was discovered that 73 percent of participants ‘admitted to using their phone on the toilet or at the urinal regardless of age or gender,’ and a staggering 93 percent of those aged 18 to 29 do it as well.
This behavior, however, can result in blood ‘pooling’ in a very undesirable location.
Doctor Joe Whittington, known as Dr Joe MD, highlighted the seriousness of this issue in a TikTok video.
He explained that the habit might lead to blood ‘pooling’ around the anus, potentially causing hemorrhoids.
He cautioned: “I tell my patients that prolonged sitting on the toilet causes blood to pool in your anal veins, which may cause hemorrhoids to form, so you’re best to not spend time sitting and scrolling.
“Get off that toilet seat!”
The Mayo Clinic defines hemorrhoids, also known as piles, as ‘swollen veins in the anus and lower rectum’.
Their website describes: “Hemorrhoids are similar to varicose veins. Hemorrhoids can develop inside the rectum, called internal hemorrhoids. They also can develop under the skin around the anus, called external hemorrhoids.”
The Mayo Clinic further indicates that sitting and scrolling on the toilet is a frequent cause of hemorrhoids.
The clinic noted via Express: “The veins around the anus tend to stretch under pressure and may bulge or swell.
“Hemorrhoids can develop from increased pressure in the lower rectum due to sitting for long periods of time, especially on the toilet.”
Nevertheless, sitting is not the sole cause.
You could develop them from straining during bowel movements, obesity, chronic diarrhea or constipation, consuming a low-fiber diet, lifting heavy objects, or engaging in anal sexual intercourse.
Prolonged time on the toilet may cause blood to pool in an ‘external hemorrhoid and form a clot known as a thrombus’.
The Clinic notes that a thrombosed hemorrhoid can cause severe pain, swelling, inflammation, or even a strangulated hemorrhoid, leading to significant discomfort.
Underneath this video, viewers commented on the potential risks to their bodies if they remained seated on the toilet for too long, and predictably, many were watching the clip from the toilet.
One individual remarked: “I can’t do S**T in peace.”
Another viewer commented: “You’re not gonna believe how I’m watching this rn.”
Some questioned: “How does the blood know I’m on the toilet tho.”
Others were curious about the difference between sitting on the toilet and on a chair, but assuming that the chair doesn’t have a hole in the middle which allows gravity to pull the middle of your anus down, the reasoning becomes clear.