We’ve all done it. You sit down, phone in hand, and before you know it, you’ve scrolled through emails, headlines, or half your Instagram feed. Harmless, right? Maybe not.
New research suggests that bringing your smartphone to the bathroom could come with an unexpected health cost: a significantly higher risk of hemorrhoids.
What the Science Says
A 2025 study published in PLOS One found that people who regularly used their phones on the toilet had 46% higher odds of having hemorrhoids, even after accounting for age, sex, BMI, exercise, straining, and fiber intake. In other words, it’s not just what you eat or how much fiber you get—it’s the habit of scrolling on the toilet itself that makes a difference.
Why? Sitting too long increases pressure in the veins of the rectum and anus. Add straining into the mix, and you’ve created a perfect environment for hemorrhoids to form or worsen.
How Long Is Too Long?
According to Dr. Farah Monzur, an assistant professor of medicine and director of the Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center at Stony Brook Medicine, “People should spend an average of five to 10 minutes on the john.” Beyond that, the risks start to rise.
Phones are one of the biggest culprits stretching sessions past this healthy window. What might have been a quick five minutes can easily turn into fifteen when you’re lost in a news rabbit hole or group chat.
The Overlooked Habit That Adds Up
Unlike diet or exercise, bathroom time isn’t something most people think about tracking. But those extra minutes add up. If you’re lingering on the toilet two or three times a day, you could be adding an extra half hour or more of unnecessary pressure to your digestive system every single day.
This isn’t just about hemorrhoids, either. Extended toilet sessions may influence your digestive rhythm—your stool frequency, consistency, and strain. These subtle shifts are easy to miss in the moment but can reveal a lot about your overall gut health over time.
Throne’s Bathroom Habits Feature
That’s where Throne comes in.
Our Bathroom Habits feature automatically tracks how long you’re on the toilet—no timers, no guesswork. If you’re approaching the edge of that healthy 10-minute window, Throne gives you a gentle nudge to wrap things up. No judgment, no alarms—just a friendly reminder that it’s time to get off the throne.
This feature doesn’t just help you avoid hemorrhoid risk. It connects the dots between toilet time and your broader digestive pattern. By combining bathroom duration with insights on stool frequency, consistency, and strain, Throne gives you a more complete picture of your gut health than you’ve ever had before.
Why This Matters Beyond Hemorrhoids
Your bathroom habits aren’t just about comfort—they’re a reflection of your overall health.
- Gut health: Regular, balanced bowel movements (neither too rushed nor too drawn-out) are a sign of digestive stability.
- Lifestyle insights: Stress, hydration, and diet all leave their mark on how often and how long you sit on the toilet.
- Early warning signs: Subtle changes in your bathroom rhythm can be the first signal of digestive issues before they become bigger problems.
Throne turns these signals into insights. By building awareness of how long you’re on the toilet and how often patterns shift, you can make better choices for your body—whether that means drinking more water, adjusting your fiber intake, or simply cutting back on bathroom scrolling.
The Bottom Line
Scrolling on the toilet feels harmless, but the data is clear: it raises your risk of hemorrhoids and stretches your bathroom sessions beyond what’s healthy. Experts say five to ten minutes is plenty.
Throne helps you stick to that window effortlessly. With automatic tracking and gentle nudges, you’ll know exactly how long you’ve been there—so you can step off before your bathroom break becomes a bathroom problem.
Because the truth is simple: less scrolling, less strain, healthier habits. And Throne is here to make that easier than ever.
This article is for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide medical advice. Throne is not a medical device and does not diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
