Should I put my finger in my belly button to clean it?

I often put my finger in my navel to remove the black dirt to clean it. Does this action affect hygiene? (Tien, 34 years old, Hanoi ).

Reply:

By nature, the belly button is deep and can harbor a lot of bacteria, dirt, sebum (oil), and dead skin cells. These things in the belly button can cause skin problems such as acne, blackheads. The belly button can also cause ingrown hairs to develop in this area, causing folliculitis.

The more you try to manually stimulate or pick at the navel skin, the worse it gets, increasing the risk of infection or scar tissue developing. Long-term consequences of navel picking include staph or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections, yeast overgrowth, or itchy bumps.

So how do you clean your belly button? In fact, it's normal to have some bacteria in your belly button. Your skin has its own microbiome, made up of millions of bacteria, fungi, and viruses, that help protect your body from the outside world . So you shouldn't try to make your belly button too clean and completely bacteria-free.

If you notice that your belly button is showing signs of acne, folliculitis, or is itchy or smelly, you should gently clean it by washing it in the shower with soap and water. Then, gently rub the belly button with a cotton swab soaked in alcohol and let it dry. If you scratch the skin around your belly button, moisturize the area and cover it with a bandage.

Doctor Doan Hong
Vietnam Institute of Applied Medicine

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