A woman holding a magnifying glass over her belly button. Photo / Getty Images
There’s more to navel gazing than meets the eye. Look beyond your belly button to what it can tell you about your health.
Navels, belly buttons, innies or outies … whatever term you use, your umbilicus may have plenty to tell you about the state of your health.
For some, they are the thing of nightmares – omphalophobia (the fear of belly buttons) is a real condition. For others, they are a fashion accessory to be shown off in a crop top, or decorated with a body piercing.
Whatever your feelings about belly buttons, one thing’s for sure – it once joined you to your mother. The umbilical cord is severed at birth to leave just a small clamped stump that progressively withers and falls away a week or two later.
What you’re left with, in most cases, is a small wrinkled depression. That’s if you have an “innie”, as most of us – 90 per cent apparently – do. From this point, the belly button seems to become redundant – other than to gather dust and fluff.
But that’s not the whole story – your navel has more depth to it than just a few millimetres.
The umbilicus is an access point for the vessels carrying blood to and from the foetus. These have come from the placenta and run through the umbilical cord, coated in Wharton’s jelly – a gelatinous connective tissue contained in the cord that insulates and protects them.
There are normally three vessels within the cord. The one carrying oxygen and nutrients to the foetus is the umbilical vein. It passes through the umbilicus and feeds into the developing foetal circulation. There are also two umbilical arteries, which carry deoxygenated blood and waste products, flowing in the other direction back to the placenta.
This circulation is not needed after the baby is born, and once disconnected from the placenta the umbilical vessels naturally close up. But the little stump of cut cord left clinging on can still be of use for a short time, especially in newborn babies who are poorly. The vessels can have drip lines inserted and be used for infusions of medicine, or have blood samples taken from them for testing.
The umbilicus is a portal in the wall of the abdomen – it’s a little-known fact that during your embryonic development, your intestines actually have to leave your abdominal cavity because of limited space, but return a few weeks later. They do so via the umbilicus, passing into the cord.
As a result, the umbilicus is not just an access point, but a point of weakness. An umbilical hernia occurs if a section of the intestine pokes through any gap. This may require an operation to correct it.
The nun and the navel
Poor Sister Mary Joseph Dempsey. She was a nun who devoted much of her life to the care of patients in a hospital in Minnesota. She trained as a nurse, later becoming a surgical assistant to the doctor William Mayo. It was during this tenure that she highlighted an interesting observation.
At the time (the late 19th century), cancers of the abdomen and pelvis were typically diagnosed much later and unfortunately were often more extensive. We call this process metastasis, where a cancer starts in one organ or location and then spreads to another.
Mary Joseph noted that some patients with metastatic cancer had a new palpable swelling or nodule in their umbilicus. She did the noble deed of reporting this to Mayo, who fairly evidently hadn’t noted it himself. He went on to rather ignominiously publish these findings under his own name, without giving due credit to his esteemed colleague. It was only after the deaths of Dempsey and Mayo - both in 1939 - that another doctor, Hamilton Bailey, rightly named the finding Sister Mary Joseph’s nodule.
The nodule is firm, of variable colouring, and actually arises from the spread of the cancer to the umbilical tissue. It’s not seen as commonly these days, since more cancers are now diagnosed earlier before extensive spreading occurs.
Medusa’s head
Other signs can be observed in the navel that have a footing in mythology. One example allows us to draw a connection between the liver and the umbilicus.
The skin around the navel has beds of superficial veins that feed back towards the deeper circulation. They actually drain blood into the hepatic portal vein, a large vessel that is heading into the liver, chock-full of nutrients absorbed from the gut.
If the pressure in the portal vein becomes too high (mostly as a result of liver diseases, like alcohol cirrhosis) pressure builds in the connecting vessels too. Veins have thinner walls than arteries and tend to balloon under pressure.
As a result, the normally small veins around the navel dilate in size and become visible beneath the skin, fanning in all directions. This sign, like a head replete with snakes for hair, is named caput medusae, or Medusa’s head. In Greek mythology, the gorgon Medusa whose head was severed by the hero Perseus could turn anyone who beheld her gaze to stone.
And on that topic, all that dirt, debris and dead skin in our navels should also get an honourable (or maybe dishonourable) mention – prolonged accumulation of this material within the cavity can make it harden over time, forming a stony mass. We call this an omphalolith, or umbilical stone.
So, the umbilicus is something of a reliable crystal ball in diagnosing internal illnesses. But as to whether you regard it as an attractive part of your own anatomy, one has to ask the question: are you innie or outie?
FAQs
A belly button has no physiological function after birth. It is just the scar and remnant tissue of the umbilical cord. Umbilical cord is the nutritional and waste disposal highway between the mother's placenta and the unborn baby.
Is it OK to have stuff in your belly button? ›
Navel stones are not harmful, and they usually don't cause pain. Your doctor can likely remove it in their office. You can prevent them from coming back by keeping your navel clean.
What does your belly button say about your health? ›
Redness, swelling, and soreness around your belly button may indicate an infection. Numerous pathogens, including fungus, yeast, and bacteria, can penetrate the navel and induce inflammation, leading to an infection.
What is the importance of the belly button? ›
What's a Belly Button? Your belly button marks the spot where your umbilical (say: um-BIL-ih-kul) cord was once attached. This cord is a soft, bendable tube that carried nutrients — vitamins and minerals — from your mother to you, back when you were in her belly (womb).
Are we supposed to clean your belly button? ›
"Like any part of the body, the belly button also needs to be cleaned as bacteria, sebum and dead skin cells can become trapped in and around it," says Dr Ajayi-Sotubo. "This can lead to rashes, inflammation and infections."
Why is there gunk in my belly button? ›
Having what people often refer to as "gunk" in your belly button is entirely normal. In fact, given the belly button's shape and location, it would be surprising if it didn't collect skin cells, lint, and other gunk ingredients. The key is removing the material.
Can anything go inside your belly button? ›
Belly button lint is a fact of life for anyone with an “innie,” or concave navel. Regular bathing will usually keep your navel free from lint or other dirt and grime. In very rare cases, dirt, oil, and other debris can get trapped in your navel and turn into a navel stone.
What organ is directly behind the belly button? ›
The intestines are the internal organs that lie directly behind the navel.
What does touching your belly button do? ›
As you stick your finger into your belly button, it sends a signal from the deeper fibres that line your inner abdominal cavity to your spinal cord. He added: "Because your spinal cord at that level is also relaying signals from your bladder and urethra, it feels almost the same.
What is the stuff stuck in my belly button? ›
Keratin is a fibrous protein in the top layer of your skin (epidermis). It protects the cells in this outer layer of skin. A navel stone forms when sebum and keratin from dead skin cells collect in your belly button. The material accumulates and hardens into a tight mass.
Dubbed 'The Belly Button Rule', it's all to with the fact that our belly is considered to be one of our core 'power zones', apparently. So, if you angle your belly button towards someone as you speak to them, then this signals that we like, admire and trust them.
Did Adam and Eve have a belly button? ›
Your belly-button or navel is a sign that you were once connected to your mother in the womb. The umbilical cord is a necessary part of growth and development between baby and mother during pregnancy. Since Adam and Eve did not come into being like that, they did not have belly-buttons.
Why are belly buttons arousing? ›
The navel region is an erogenous zone with heightened sensitivity that when touched by the finger or the tip of the tongue can produce erotic sensations. Individuals who are ticklish in that area can be aroused by tickling, blowing raspberries, or being teased with a feather, flower, or blade of grass.
Can I clean my belly button with hydrogen peroxide? ›
Contrary to what you might think, the NHS advises against using contact lens saline, eye drops or other saline solutions, homemade salt water solution (as this will be too salty and strong), or alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, antibacterial soaps, iodine or any other harsh product (these can damage cells).
Can I remove navel stone at home? ›
Seek a doctor's advice before removing an omphalolith at home. If the stone is particularly large, hard, or has caused an infection, it may be best for a doctor to remove it. They do so in a sterile environment, which can be difficult to reproduce at home.
What is the brown stuff in my belly button? ›
Omphaloliths. As dead skin cells and sebum — the oil secreted by your skin — accumulate in your bellybutton, they can form an omphalolith over time. Also known as a navel stone, they're made of the same materials that form blackheads. The surface of a navel stone will turn black from oxidation.
Should you pick the stuff out of your belly button? ›
If you're gently pulling out some lint, you're fine — there's no reason to leave that stuff in when you find it. Problems can occur, however, if you're actively picking at your bellybutton in such a way that you nick or scrape your skin or draw blood. At that point, you can be at risk for an infection, Dr.
Is it bad to have crust in your belly button? ›
If your belly button is “leaking” clear or colored discharge or blood, you may have a bacterial, fungal, or yeast infection. Crusty skin, strong odor, itching, and redness are also signs of infection. If discharge and crust stick around after you wash your belly button, you should see your doctor.
Why do I have stuff coming out of my belly button? ›
Bacterial infections, fungal infections, and cysts may cause belly button discharge. Belly buttons can become infected if the skin is cracked, overly moist, or pierced. In addition, laparoscopic surgery through the navel may pose a risk for infection. Treatment includes antibiotics, antifungals, or drainage.
How do you get rid of stuff in your belly button? ›
A simple wash with the shower head, first, then, insert a little amount of soap / shower gel, very gently with a finger, massage it around the inside of the belly button, and when finished, again, rinse it out with the shower head. This should be enough to remove any fluff/ dirt.
