Since ancient times, no matter where the culture is, people have a very special aesthetic view of belly buttons. For example, in ancient China, people liked sunken belly buttons because people at that time believed that the deeper the belly button, the more blessed they would be.
There is even a saying among the people that " the belly button is shallow, it eats in front of the eyes, and the belly button is deep, it holds gold and silver ". Therefore, the midwives in ancient times were under a lot of pressure, fearing that their umbilical cord was not cut well, resulting in a protruding belly button. .
I happen to have a very good friend who has a protruding belly button. When I was studying, I heard him say that it was because his mother was afraid that it would hurt when he cut the umbilical cord, so she asked the doctor to cut it farther out, so it became Now the protruding belly button.
So the question is, is the depth of the belly button really related to the length of the umbilical cord?
In fact, there are many misunderstandings about belly buttons. In this article, let’s re-understand our own belly buttons!
Why does the belly button bulge?
As we all know, our belly button is the remnant of our umbilical cord, which is essentially the scar left when our umbilical cord is cut after birth—it’s the first scar we all have.
Although the shape of this scar varies, it is basically concave, and only about 10% of people have a raised navel.
Of course, Whether the belly button is raised or not is not directly related to the method of cutting the umbilical cord. , but the midwives in the past did not know this. Modern doctors no longer care too much about where to cut the umbilical cord.
When we are born, the doctor who delivers the baby basically cuts the umbilical cord a few centimeters away from our belly. The error can be very large. They will never be as fussy as the ancient midwives, for fear that they will not cut well.
The fallen umbilical cord, photo source: Greg G
Then, the doctor will close the remaining umbilical cord with a string or other clamp (my daughter was tied tightly with a string when she was born), about one to two weeks later Over time, the remaining umbilical cord will dry up and fall off, leaving a belly button.
The shape and size of the belly button completely depends on the way the abdomen heals after the umbilical cord falls off. . If the baby has umbilical hernia or other minor infections during this period, the probability of his belly button bulging will be very high.
In fact, umbilical hernia is a very common umbilical disease in babies. Many factors can cause increased abdominal pressure, which in turn causes the abdomen to bulge. The incompletely healed belly button is pushed out, and after healing, it will naturally become a bulging belly button. .
There is another interesting question here. When cutting the umbilical cord, does it hurt the baby or the mother?
In fact, the umbilical cord is connected to the placenta . It is part of the baby, so the mother will definitely not feel pain. But what surprises many people is that the baby himself will not feel pain, or even There is no feeling because the umbilical cord does not have any nerve endings .
The elders must have told you not to pick your belly button casually. The reason may be that the belly button is connected to the intestines, which will cause diarrhea or stomach pain.
If you have ever picked your belly button due to itchiness, you will definitely think that your elders are right, because the belly button is too sensitive, and if you pick it a few times, it will really make your stomach feel uncomfortable, and sometimes you will even feel like thinking. Pee.
Since there are no nerve endings in the umbilical cord, why is it so sensitive when picking the belly button, and picking the belly button can cause adverse reactions? Is it really connected to some internal organs?
Picture: Cross section of the umbilical cord
Where does the belly button connect to?
When the fetus is still in the mother's belly, everything it needs for growth is obtained and transferred through the blood circulation of the umbilical cord blood vessels.
The umbilical cord contains two types of "lifelines", one is the umbilical vein that receives nutrients and oxygen from the mother, and the other is the umbilical artery that removes waste and carbon dioxide from the fetus and returns it to the mother's body - There are two .
In the growing fetus, those umbilical veins and arteries connect to the circulatory system, liver, and bladder . But after the baby is born, the TA begins to inhale air and other nutrients, and no longer needs the umbilical vein and umbilical artery. As the external residual umbilical cord falls off, the inner part will dry up and harden into a kind of ligament, but it still On the inside of the belly button, it did not fall off.
One of the ligaments still connects to the liver and bisects it, while the other extends down to the pelvis, where part of it remains as part of the circulatory system near the bladder into adulthood.
Therefore, when we pick our belly button, our bladder may indeed be irritated and we may feel like we need to pee.
In fact, in some babies, the residual artery from the bladder to the belly button does not completely close after the umbilical cord falls off, so urine leaks from the belly button in these babies, but it can be closed with a simple surgery.
Although the belly button is still connected to the liver and bladder, its impact on them is actually very small.
When we pick our belly buttons, the real reason that may make us feel stomach discomfort is that there is almost no subcutaneous fat as a buffer under the belly button. It is directly connected to the fascia and peritoneum. This is the reason why the belly button is very sensitive. At the same time, if it is removed If you pick it, it may irritate your intestines and stomach, causing digestive discomfort.
So do you need to clean your belly button?
The belly button is really much dirtier than imagined. If the belly button is rich in fat, the belly button is often very deep, and a lot of oil or other human secretions will accumulate here. These substances are good food for cultivating microorganisms.
So, not surprisingly, the belly button is one of the most microbially rich areas of the human body.
In a 2012 study of the belly button colonies of 60 people, a total of 2,368 different species of bacteria were found.
Although only eight species of bacteria dominate the belly button microbiome—about 45 percent of the total bacterial load—there is incredible diversity between individuals, with some people having belly buttons Even the extremely rare archaea was discovered. These bacteria are usually only found in extreme environments in the ocean.
In fact, most of the time the colonies in our belly buttons are harmless to us—some studies even show that these colonies can strengthen our immune systems.
However, the belly button is indeed too easy to be infected with some bad bacteria or fungi. Some bacteria will emit an unpleasant smell when they are active, and some fungi, such as yeast infections, can cause belly button hair. Itching, redness, and clear or gray-white discharge.
In short, if the belly button colony is allowed to develop at will, it will bring some bad results.
Therefore, the belly button must be cleaned.
It’s just that as we mentioned before, the belly button is relatively fragile, and most importantly, although the belly button colony is mostly harmless, it does not mean that there are no pathogenic bacteria in it.
For example, Staphylococcus is one of the eight most important bacteria in the belly button. If the belly button is accidentally picked during cleaning, this bacteria may make the belly button suppurate.
Therefore, you must be extra careful when cleaning. You can use a cotton swab dipped in alcohol to clean gently. Alcohol can effectively inhibit bacteria, and cotton swabs can effectively take away dirt.
