Why is my belly button moist?

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.

What does a moist belly button mean?

Dirt, bacteria, fungus, and germs can get trapped inside your belly button and start to multiply, which can cause an infection. If you develop a belly button infection, you might notice white, yellow, brown, or bloody discharge seeping out of it. That discharge might also have an unpleasant smell.

Why is my belly button so moist and smelly?

Summary. When your belly button smells, it is usually because of a hygiene need or infection. The belly button contains several tiny skin folds that can trap sweat, dirt, dead skin cells, and bacteria. Possible infections include candidiasis, bacterial infections, or an infected urachal cyst.

How do you treat belly button discharge?

Share on Pinterest Antibiotic and antifungal ointments or creams may be used to treat belly button discharge. Bacterial infections are usually treated with antibiotic ointments or creams. Fungal or yeast infections are also typically treated with antifungal powders or creams.

How can I fix my smelly belly button?

Dip a cotton swab in rubbing alcohol and gently rub the surfaces inside your bellybutton. If the swab gets dirty, throw it away and start a new one. Once the cotton swab comes out clean, use a fresh one dipped in water to rinse the alcohol out of your bellybutton so it doesn't dry your skin.

Why is my belly button wet and smelly?

Will a belly button yeast infection go away on its own?

Belly button yeast infections often get better on their own when you keep your navel area clean and dry. Healthy people can usually treat belly button yeast infections with an antifungal medication.

How can you tell if your belly button is infected?

Is belly button infection serious?

If you think you have an infection in your belly button, you should call your doctor so that you can have the area cleaned carefully. You may also need prescription antibiotics to kill the bacteria before it spread to other parts of your body.

What cream is good for infected belly button?

Treatment: Use an antifungal cream such as miconazole nitrate (Micatin, Monistat-Derm) or clotrimazole (Lotrimin, Mycelex), and keep your navel clean and dry.

What your belly button says about your health?

The shape and dent of your navel essentially determines how the umbilical cord heals. Belly buttons don't necessarily mean anything in particular about your health, however some people would argue that your belly button says a lot about you as a person.” Belly buttons are low-key gross.

Why is there gunk in my belly button?

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.

Why does my belly button smell cheesy?

Most innies are full of dozens of kinds of bacteria, fungi, and lint — especially if they're on a hairy belly. If a navel gets infected, it might also have a foul-smelling, cheese-like liquid inside. Speaking of cheese, a biologist teamed up with an artist in 2013 to create cheese using belly button bacteria.

Can you clean your belly button with peroxide?

Depending on the sensitivity of your skin, you can use water, a saltwater solution, or hydrogen peroxide to clean your belly button. Dip one side of a cotton swab into a cleansing agent and gently wipe your belly button.

How long do belly button infections last?

While most belly button piercings heal without issues, bacteria can infect the area before healing is complete. Infections are usually minor. Symptoms can include pain, redness, and swelling, and improving hygiene can help. Complete healing can take 9–12 months.

What happens when you don't clean your belly button?

"All flesh holes can build up with sweat, dead skin cells, oils, clothing fabric, bacteria and forbidden cheese," he says in the clip, which has since been viewed over 300k times. "If not washed out on a regular basis, this material can accumulate and harden into an omphalolith – a belly button stone," he adds.

What is the belly button connected to internally?

Internally the veins and arteries in the cord close up and form ligaments, which are tough connective tissues. These ligaments divide up the liver into sections and remain attached to the inside of the belly button.

Can you put Vaseline in your belly button?

A clean belly button is important, but a dry one will help keep that moist environment that bacteria loves to grow in at bay. If, for some reason, you do go at your belly button with something sharp, like your nails, apply a little Vaseline jelly to the area to help your wounds heal, says Dr.

Why does my belly button smell even though I wash it?

Most belly buttons are indented so act as a trap for sweat, dead skin, and dirt. Few people wash the belly button with soap so germs can develop. The most common cause for a belly button smell is poor hygiene. All areas of the body need to be washed regularly to stay clean and healthy.

Should you wash your belly button?

Your belly button should be cleaned just like all the other parts of the body; otherwise, the area can develop gnarly smells and infections, often paired with red, itchy, and scabby skin—especially if you have a navel piercing.

What lives in your belly button?

If you're an innie and not an outie, your belly button is home to at least 60 to 100 or more species of bacteria, fungi and yeasts, according to new research. If you're an innie and not an outie, your belly button is home to at least 60 to 100 or more species of bacteria, fungi and yeasts, according to new research.

What organ is behind the belly button?

Periumbilical pain is a type of abdominal pain that is localized in the region around or behind your belly button. This part of your abdomen is referred to as the umbilical region. It contains parts of your stomach, small and large intestine, and your pancreas.

Do belly buttons have nerve endings?

Even though the belly button is just a scar, the area has many nerve endings, making it ticklish, sensitive, and — if you're like Madonna — a love button that shoots sex tingles up your spine.

What happens if your belly button opens?

Urachus. Before birth, your bladder connects to your bellybutton through this channel in your gut. Though it usually disappears by the time you're born, sometimes it remains. You might not notice it, but if it's completely open, your navel may be wet as urine flows up and even leaks out.

What does it mean when the inside of your belly button hurts?

There are many reasons a person can experience bellybutton pain. Some causes can be minor, including indigestion, constipation, and pregnancy. Others may be more serious, such as gallstones, appendicitis, or pancreatitis. Bellybutton pain can range in severity from mild to sharp.

What is the dirtiest part of your body?

Keep your hands off your belly button

Did you know that your belly button is the dirtiest part of the body, according to the Public Library of Science? “The belly button harbors a high population of bacteria,” Dr. Richardson says.