Doctors perform measurements to assess how healthy your body is. But these examinations take a lot of time and are not always pleasant. That’s why scientists came up with the idea of carrying out measurements in a place you visit every day anyway: the toilet! How that works exactly was investigated by Het Klokhuis, including a visit to Radboudumc. The result can be seen on Tuesday, March 10 at 18:40 on NPO3. Afterward, the episode can be viewed online.
In the episode, we see gastroenterologist Marjolijn Duijvestein together with Daphne, who lives with an inflammatory bowel disease. A smart toilet seat can help ensure that not all measurements need to be performed in the hospital. Technical physician Lotte Hazeleger explains how the invention works. The research on the smart toilet seat won the ninth Klokhuis Science Award in 2025.
About the smart toilet seat
The smart toilet seat was developed by OnePlanet Research Center, a collaboration between Radboudumc, Radboud University, Wageningen University & Research (WUR), and imec. This toilet seat can measure various variables such as heart rate and weight during a toilet visit, and it can map toilet behavior objectively through chip sensors integrated into a regular toilet seat. The use of the smart toilet seat is being studied in different groups, such as patients with inflammatory bowel diseases like ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. At Radboudumc, this research is being conducted by Lotte Hazeleger and principal investigator and gastroenterologist Marjolijn Duijvestein, who is part of the Radboudumc talent program for exceptionally talented researchers. In addition, research will be carried out in the coming year on the toilet behavior of a healthy population.
Tune in on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, at 18:40 to Het Klokhuis on NPO3. The episode can also be viewed afterward via this link.
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Pauline Dekhuijzen
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