Belly button is the little dent that we have in the belly. Though it does not serve any purpose in our daily life, yet it is a matter of interest to know what it is and why we have it.
Before birth, a child passes through embryo and foetus stages. In these stages, its abdomen is connected to the mother’s body by a rope-like tube called the umbilical cord. Everything which an embryo or a foetus needs to survive and grow during the pre-natal phase of nine months is supplied to the unborn baby from the mother’s body through this cord. Oxygen and food from the mother’s blood are carried to it through the vein in the umbilical cord. And the wastes are excreted through the two arteries in the umbilical cord. The cord remains attached to the spot where the belly button is.
After the child is born the role of the umbilical cord ends because the child can now eat, drink, breathe and get rid of the body’s waste by itself, using the specific organs. Hence at the time of delivery, the cord is carefully cut off as close to the belly as possible. It does not hurt the mother or the baby. A tiny piece of cord left after cutting the long umbilical cord dries within a week and falls off, leaving a scar or a dent on the abdomen. It is called the navel or belly button.