Wai Wai is reporting on another syndrome this week, and this time they are warning about one of the greatest technological advances to come out of Japan in decades – the washlet.

“Washlet” is the name of the device in high-tech Japanese toilets that provide a gentle shower of water to help you clean up after using the toilet. Wai Wai warns, however, that washlets may be creating problems for folks who have become too addicted to them.

A 30-something Tokyo man and avowed washlette fan [spends] about 15 minutes every morning in the smallest room of his home — and not because he’s either constipated or reading the paper.

“I use the washlette to clean up my bottom after I’ve defecated, but when I do so, the warm water it emits stimulates my buttocks and I feel like I’ve got more to let out. That goes on over and over again and makes it hard to leave the toilet,” he tells Shukan Asahi.

This guy goes on to say that these days he refuses to use a toilet unless it is equipped with a washlet. In fact Japanese proctologists are warning against what they call “washlet syndrome,” which is causes by over-washing the anus after defecation.

“Before wash toilets were as common as they are now, those people who did use them tended to keep the water relatively tepid and pressure low,” [a proctologist] tells Shukan Asahi. “But now, when washlettes are being used even in public toilets and you can wash your anus anywhere, people have become used to them. Many want an ever-stronger stimulation when they wash, turning the pressure up high and making the water hotter.”

Representatives of TOTO, Japan’s leading toilet manufacturer, say they have not received any complaints from their customers.