New study
Sprinkling makes you pee: If you watch too much TV, you have to go to the toilet more often at night
Watching a lot of television and Netflix has consequences (symbolic image)
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If you have to go out often at night, you might want to reduce your media consumption. A new study shows: If you have to go to the toilet often at night, you shouldn’t necessarily drink less – but rather skip the TV.
Do I have to get up or is it enough to turn around again? If your bladder presses regularly at night, getting a good night’s sleep is no longer an option. A recent study has now discovered a possible cause that you wouldn’t suspect: Anyone who sits in front of the television a lot has a significantly higher risk of being prevented from sleeping at night by the urge to urinate.
The Chinese study, which has just been published in the specialist magazine “Neurourology and Urodynamics”. Wenzhou Medical University evaluated the TV viewing habits of 13,294 Americans over the age of 20. The data was collected between 2011 and 2016 as part of a survey conducted by the US National Center for Health Data. The result is surprising: On the one hand, a full 32 percent of those surveyed wake up at night because they have to go to the toilet. On the other hand, this number is significantly higher for continuous television viewing.
More TV or Netflix, get up more often
The scientists calculated that the risk of this increases by 48 percent if you sit in front of the television a lot. The study defines heavy viewers as people who consume five hours or more of classic TV programs or streaming offers every day. Compared to people who only watch for an hour or less, the risk is almost one and a half times as high.
What’s exciting is that the differences cannot be attributed to other factors that one might expect. The 48 percent difference exists when you factor out known risk factors such as age, gender, body mass index, ethnicity, education level and even diabetes. To our knowledge, this is the first study to document a direct connection between TV time and getting up at night,” the scientists explain.
Causes unclear
But anyone hoping for explanations will be disappointed. The study emphasizes that the data analysis does not allow any conclusion to be drawn as to how the connection found actually arises. For example, it is not even clear whether there is really a causal connection, i.e. whether watching TV for long periods of time causes people to go to the toilet at night, or vice versa. Further investigations are therefore necessary.
However, a whole range of explanations are conceivable, according to the study. There is already a known connection between watching TV for a long time and diabetes-2 – which in turn can cause the urge to urinate at night. It is also known that sitting for long periods of time can promote water retention in the legs. In addition, watching television is typically associated with the consumption of drinks, which means increased fluid intake,” the scientists explain.
Other possible explanations include neurological changes caused by prolonged sitting, which could lead to bladder dysfunction. Lack of sleep caused by watching TV for long periods of time is also a possible cause. “A deterioration in sleep quality is closely linked to the risk of nocturnal urination.”
Stream more consciously
The scientists still see the study as important. By being aware of the connection, patients suffering from the problem can point out their TV consumption as a contributing factor, they advise. “Increasing public awareness of this potential health risk should encourage people to be more conscious of the time they spend watching television and video.”