The Suez Canal blockage could short supply toilet paper, but rectal surgeons say we should be using bidets anyway
- Toilet paper is a standard clean-up tool after pooping, but it's not the healthiest way.
- Bidets are gentler and more hygienic than toilet paper, which just smears around your poo.
- Bidets spray a small stream of water onto your butthole, rinsing off leftover fecal matter.
Toilet paper could be in short supply after a freight boat got stuck in the Suez Canal last week, causing supply-chain issues.
The Suez Canal is an Egyptian waterway for trading between Europe and Asia and 12% of all global trade moves through the canal. Suzano SA, a company that produces pulp for making toliet paper, told Bloomberg the Suez Canal blockage will delay their pulp shipments.
That means less toilet paper will be made and a potential lack of supply available in stores in the coming weeks. It could result in another toilet paper shortage, similar to the one Americans experienced at the start of the pandemic when demand for the rolls skyrocketed due to stay-at-home orders.
In the face of another toilet paper famine, perhaps there is space to explore another means of cleaning your butt - bidets. Toilet paper is marketed as a way to clean up after pooping, but it may not actually be the most hygenic.
According to Dr. Evan Goldstein, a rectal surgeon in New York City, using a bidet is the ideal way to care for your backside after using the bathroom.
"Charmin and all these brands have done a great job making us think that toilet paper is hygienic. It's not," Goldstein told Insider during Butt-Con, an event hosted by Tushy, a company that sells bidet attachments for toilet seats.
Bidet advocates say that wiping with toilet paper essentially smears your fecal matter around without actually cleaning the area. The way Goldstein put it, it's like stepping on dog poop and only wiping it off with paper rather than washing it off your shoe first.
Still, the average American goes through about three rolls of toilet paper every week, Fortune reported.
Wiping with toilet paper can cause anal tears
Not only does toilet paper do a less-than-ideal job of cleaning, but the butt-wiping tool can actually lead to injury, Goldstein said.
Dry toilet paper can be abrasive, so if someone wipes too hard or too many times, the thin and delicate skin on your anus can tear, causing bleeding or pain.
The solution, according to Goldstein, is using bidets, if possible.
The tools, which are few and far between in the US, work by spraying a small stream of water (the same water that comes out of your faucet) onto your butthole, rinsing off any leftover fecal matter. Then you can just pull up your pants or pat off the excess water with a small bit of toilet paper.
The scientific jury is still out on whether bidets are really safer
There's not a lot of research on bidets, and what is out there is mixed, according to Berkeley Wellness. They may be a good option for people with arthritis, and some research suggests they can help with conditions such as hemorrhoids, anal fissures, and pruritus ani (aka an itchy anus).
But other research has found that a type of anal fissure may actually improve when you stop using a bidet, Berkeley reported, and another study found that women who use bidets all the time may alter the normal bacteria in their vaginas.
How safe a bidet is also depends on the pressure and water temperature.
If you choose not to use a bidet or don't have access to one, just be sure to use a patting motion rather than a wiping motion to prevent creating too much friction and causing anal tears, Goldstein said.