Why do black babies have Outies?

They occur when part of the intestine bulges through the umbilical opening in the abdominal muscles. This creates a soft bulge or swelling near the navel that might become more noticeable when the baby cries or strains. They are more common in premature babies, low birth weight babies, and Black infants.

Are Outies genetic?

Innie or outie: Whether you have an innie or an outie bellybutton has nothing to do with whether your mother had one or your father or your grandfather. In other words, it has nothing to do with genetics. And it has nothing to do with how the doctor cut your umbilical cord.

Why do some babies have Outies?

About 20 percent of all newborns have an "outie," also called an umbilical hernia. This is a bulge caused by the umbilical cord as it enters the baby's abdomen. After birth, as the umbilical cord heals and falls off, the opening to the abdomen usually closes spontaneously.

What determines if a belly button is an innie or outie?

When you're born, the umbilical cord is cut and you have a small piece left called the umbilical stump. One to 2 weeks after birth, this stump falls off and what remains is your belly button. As a result, your belly button is essentially a scar. Whether it's an innie or outie depends on how your skin grows as it heals.

Why do some babies have belly buttons that stick out?

If your baby has a bulge around the bellybutton, they may have an umbilical hernia. Before the umbilical cord falls off, you may notice that the area seems to stick out a little more when the baby cries. Or maybe, once the cord is gone, you see that their navel sticks out (an “outie,” as it's commonly called).

Outie Belly Button - Why Do Some People Have It?

Can an outie become an innie?

No. Some people claim you can change an outie to an innie – by taping a quarter over it, for example – but it's just not true.

Do outie belly buttons go away?

If a child is born with an "outie" belly button, there is a 90 percent chance that it will close on its own by the time the child turns 5 years old. However, if the defect is not closed by age 5, the chances are much less that it will ever close completely.

What is the rarest belly button?

Protruding (outie)

Protruding belly buttons are often called “outies.” An estimated 10 percent of the population has an outie belly button with the remainder having an “innie,” according to a chapter in the eBook Umbilicus and Umbilical Cord.

How are Outies formed?

Outies usually occur when more of the umbilical cord is left when it's cut, leading to more skin left over once it dries out. In some rare cases, outies are caused by a condition known as an umbilical hernia.

Why shouldn't you play with your navel?

There are many risks associated with playing with your navel, but one of the most important is that you can push on your bellybutton and cause an infection. This happens when you introduce bacteria into your body through a wound in the area. To avoid this, make sure to always keep your hands clean and dry!

How do I stop my baby from having an outie?

Chances are you've heard the myth that you can prevent an outie by strapping something across a baby's belly or taping a coin over it. This is pure folklore with no medical merit. Not only will this not change the shape or size of your baby's belly button, but it could actually be harmful.

How can I avoid an outie during pregnancy?

Your newly outie navel might get irritated from rubbing against your clothes. Try using a specially-designed belly button cover or a pregnancy support product, like a tummy sleeve or tummy shaper, to protect a popped-out navel.

What do you do with a baby's belly button?

A baby's umbilical cord stump dries out and eventually falls off — usually within one to three weeks after birth. In the meantime, treat the area gently: Keep the stump dry. Parents were once instructed to swab the stump with rubbing alcohol after every diaper change.

What is the purpose of a belly button?

Your belly button, also called the navel or umbilicus, has no function after birth and is simply a scar or remnant of the umbilical cord that connected you to your mother. The umbilical cord provides oxygen and nutrition to a baby during pregnancy, and it is cut and removed after birth, leaving a scar.

Can you be born without a belly button?

Omphalocele (pronounced uhm-fa-lo-seal) is a birth defect of the abdominal (belly) wall. The infant's intestines, liver, or other organs stick outside of the belly through the belly button. The organs are covered in a thin, nearly transparent sac that hardly ever is open or broken.

Can outie belly buttons be pierced?

You can have an outie and still have enough skin to accommodate a navel piercing above your nub — which is the most common placement for a navel piercing — or just below it.

Are innie belly buttons more attractive?

According to a study at the University of Missouri, small, T-shaped belly buttons are the most attractive. Researchers showed pictures of innies, outies, and belly buttons of all shapes and sizes to a group of men and women who rated them on a scale of 1 to 10 from least to most attractive.

Are belly buttons genetic?

Many folks wonder how they ended up with one or the other type of belly button. Is it genetics? Does it depend on how your umbilical cord is cut at birth? Turns out that it is just depends on the amount of space there is at birth between the skin and the abdominal wall.

Why is my belly button so smelly?

Even if you don't develop a yeast infection, the accumulation of sweat, dirt, dead skin cells, and lint can cause your bellybutton to smell. Omphaloliths. As dead skin cells and sebum — the oil secreted by your skin — accumulate in your bellybutton, they can form an omphalolith over time.

What happens if you don't cut the umbilical cord?

When the umbilical cord is not clamped and cut right after the baby is born, the baby gets more of their own blood back into their body. Getting extra blood may lower the chance of your baby having low iron levels at 4 to 6 months of life and may help your baby's health in other ways.

Do babies cry when umbilical cord falls off?

The umbilical cord stump usually falls off 10 days to 3 weeks after birth. How do you know if the umbilical cord is infected? your baby cries when you touch the stump.

What happens if you pull the umbilical cord?

If the cord stump is pulled off too soon, it could start actively bleeding, meaning every time you wipe away a drop of blood, another drop appears. If the cord stump continues to bleed, call your baby's provider immediately.

Will my outie go back to an innie after pregnancy?

Not every mom-to-be who had an innie gets an outtie, and sometimes it's more like a flat navel. And the good news is, in almost every case it'll be back to an innie after the baby comes and your belly shrinks back to normal (or close to it).

Is it okay if your belly button doesn't pop out during pregnancy?

“Some women do not develop an outie though, and simply have a flattening of the belly button where it pretty much just disappears,” he says. Unfortunately, there's really no way of predicting whether it will happen to you.

Why is my pregnant belly sometimes hard and sometimes soft?

What nobody tells you is how it will feel as it expands, and how that feeling can change over time. Depending on your stage of pregnancy, your body type, and even the time of day, sometimes your belly will feel soft and other times it will feel tight and hard. The reality is, there's no normal to compare yourself with.