The belly button (or navel) is the first scar a body ever embeds. At the time of your birth, the umbilical cord, which provided nutrients to you while you were in your mommy’s tummy, is a very strong connection between your mother and you during those nine months. It is clamped off shortly after the placenta has been removed. The remaining vestiges of the cord usually wither off eventually and the belly button is the scar that remains from this "falling off" process of the cord.
There has been a long, never-ending debate upon the causes of an outie belly button and the following few are the most common reasons suggested by medical experts.
Most of the times the scar leaves an inside impact on the tummy whereas, an outie belly button is considered to be a theory of natural selection that happens only to a few of us amongst many. Doctors suggest that the cause of an outie belly button is genetic aberration. However, lack of scientific evidence fails to prove that this is a genetically occurring phenomenon or even that the innie belly button occurs due to genetic factors.
After you are born, the umbilical cord shrivels up and you have an innie belly button. But, if the cord had unusually extra blood supply, it stays alive and heals itself over the stomach which causes an outie belly button.
Some say that the way doctors handle the clamping off of the cord may play a significant role in determining the cause of your outie belly button. However, the cord is clamped off several inches from the body and the development of an innie or outie belly button cannot be then, surgically manipulated.
Doctors also claim that the cause of an outie belly button may be due to abdominal hernia which is basically a weakening of your body’s abdominal muscles. The collapsing of the abdominal walls may cause hernia which in turn results in the belly button protruding. This is by far the most popular reason as to why outie belly buttons may occur. However, scientific studies suggest that the scar tissue is the main determinant of whether your belly button will be an innie or an outie and not the weak muscle tissue.
Also, some studies suggest that confusing umbelical hernia with an outie belly button is a very common factor. Hernia expands when the baby cries or strains but the outie belly button does not. The hernia also causes a more protrude form of the belly button as compared to the outie. The surgery to covert the outie belly button to an innie is known as umbilicoplasty.
But, if you are convinced that the cause of your outie belly button is weak muscles of the abdomen then there are numerous exercises available so as to strengthen the muscles and somewhat lessen the protruding outie belly button. You can always join yoga classes or take up lessons at the gym or even online.
Whatever the cause may be, having an outie or an innie belly button does not change the fact that we’re all human. We were all infants when this scar forming process took place and there is very little we can do to change that.
Ever been tired of wondering why you out of all the other people have an outie belly button? Well, worry not because science has proven it to be perfectly normal and not something to be worried about all. Here are a few causes to your uniqueness.
