Although many of us refuse to admit it, it’s a fact that everyone uses their phone on the toilet.
Protest all you like, but we won’t believe you if you say you don’t.
In fact, a recent study revealed that 57 per cent of Brits had owned up to using their phone on the loo, with eight per cent claiming they ‘always’ do it.
But the question is, at what cost does a cheeky swipe through Instagram on the toilet come at?
Doctors are now warning that this practise can give you piles, lumps inside and around your bottom.
Speaking to The Sun Online, Dr Sarah Jarvis, GP and Clinical Director of patient.info, explained that it is the length of time your phone leads you to spend on the loo that raises the risk of developing haemorrhoids.
The more you use your phone on the toilet, the longer you will be sat there, meaning that pressure increases on the veins of the anus in the lower rectum.
Dr Jarvis said: ‘Constipation and straining to poo is a major risk factor for piles – being pregnant, chronic cough and getting older also factor.
‘But so too does prolonged sitting on the loo. And while in the past, some of us took a good book into the toilet with us, these days it’s more likely to be the ever-present mobile phone.
‘So tempting while it may be to scroll through your apps while you’re waiting to perform, doctors don’t recommend it.’
In addition to itchy lumps around your anus, symptoms of piles include bright red blood after you poo, feeling like you still need to poo after going to the toilet and slimy mucus in your underwear after wiping your bottom.
Dr Jarvis added that to avoid getting a nasty case of piles, you should eat plenty of fibre, exercise regularly and ‘leave your mobile phone behind (or at least locked) when you visit the smallest room’.
And you thought a cheeky game of Angry Birds on the loo was harmless! You’ve all been warned.
