The Navel

body · birth · biology

Where babies connect. Before you were born, a tube called the umbilical cord ran from your belly to your mom's body, bringing you oxygen and food. When you were born and took your first breath, you no longer needed it, so the doctor cut it off.

Everyone has one. Every human baby is born with an umbilical cord, so every person has a navel. It's like a universal belly button badge that shows you were once connected to your mom in a special way.

Different shapes. Some navels stick out, some go inward like a little pit, and some are completely flat. The shape depends on how the leftover cord healed when you were a newborn, and it's totally normal to look different from your friends.

A scar that stays. Your navel is really just a scar, since it's where the umbilical cord was tied off and eventually fell off. It's the only scar most people are born with and keep their whole life.