The Shocking Reason Doctors Say Spending Just 10 Minutes on the Toilet Could Harm Your Health

Ever find yourself stuck in the bathroom scrolling endlessly, totally forgetting that nature’s call was meant to be a quick pit stop—not a Netflix marathon? Turns out, those prolonged toilet sessions might be more hazardous than your boss’s midday emails. Doctors warn that if you’re routinely lounging on the porcelain throne for over ten minutes—especially while glued to your phone—you could be signing up for some very unpleasant, intimate troubles. Think weakened muscles, hemorrhoids (yes, the dreaded piles), and even the scary prospect of rectal prolapse. No one wants their bathroom break to turn into a health scare, right? So maybe it’s time to rethink our social media habits when nature calls and keep those throne times short and sweet. Curious about why your butt might be sending SOS signals and how to avoid turning your toilet trips into a pain in the… you know? LEARN MORE.

The timing of your toilet trips probably vary day to day – sometimes you’re in and out, others, you’re welded to the seat.

But doctors are urging people not to linger longer than they need to, as you are running the risk of encountering an intimate medical problem.

If you’re going over the ten minute mark on a regular basis, there’s a big chance that your bottom might end up paying the price for your lengthy jaunts to the bathroom.

Loads of people overstay their welcome when using the lavatory, especially if they are having a good scroll while relieving themselves.

But prolonged sitting on the toilet seat has been known to weaken your pelvic and anal muscles, as well as drastically increasing your risk of developing haemorrhoids.

These are lumps which appear inside and around your anus, which are also often referred to as piles.

According to the NHS, symptoms include an itchy bottom, bright red blood appearing after you defecate, and perhaps feeling like you still need to go, even if you’ve just been.

Those with piles might also spot mucus in their underwear or on toilet paper or experience pain around the anus. We told you it was an intimate problem!

Prolonged sitting on the toilet can lead to some unfortunate health problems (Getty Stock Image)

Thankfully, there are a number of methods you can use to treat haemorrhoids, but trying your best to swerve them altogether would be much a better idea.

And in this day and age, the prevention tactic we all need to be reminded of is avoiding spending more than 10 minutes on the toilet while browsing social media.

They don’t say crap or get off the pot for nothing, you know.

Dr Lai Xue, a colorectal surgeon at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, explained that loads of patients often come to him complaining of piles.

“One of the main areas we have to delve deeply into is spending a lot of time on the toilet,” he told CNN.

“Nowadays, we’re seeing an increase in people passing more time on the toilet, and that is very much unhealthy for the anorectal organs and the pelvic floor.”

If you are seriously struggling to get things going, Dr Xue suggests calling it a day after ten minutes have passed and instead going for a little walk around.

This movement can kickstart the muscles in your gut and help your bowel movement get its mojo back, while eating high-fibre foods regularly is another good way to avoid disappointment when defecating.

Spending more than ten minutes in the bathroom is bad news, medics say (Getty Stock Image)

Dr. Farah Monzur, an assistant professor of medicine and director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center at Long Island’s Stony Brook Medicine, shared a similar sentiment too.

She explained that people should be aiming to spend between five and ten minutes in the bathroom – although this typically ends up being a lot longer, as people lose track of time while scrolling through their phone.

Dr Monzur said that prolonged periods of sitting on the toilet seat often result in people straining their muscles to force something out.

The medic warned that as well as weakened muscles, you are also risking a rectal prolapse, which the NHS explains ‘is when the last few inches of the bowel become stretched and stick out from the anus’.

Again, it’s another unfortunate intimate problem which you really don’t want to experience.

So how can we avoid any of this scary stuff happening to our ar*ses?

Dr Monzur explained you’re best off keeping any reading material – as well as your phone – far away from the toilet.

“You don’t want to go with the mindset that you will be there for a long time,” she added. “Because then you’ll want to bring something to keep the mind occupied.

“Make sitting on the toilet bowl as uninteresting as possible.”