Occasionally, a liquid forms in my belly button that has a strange odor. Why does this happen and how can I prevent it from happening again?
If you find you've got a smelly belly, start contemplating your navel.
If you have an "outie," Dr. Oz says you could have a small hernia that's been there since your birth. Normally with an outie, there's no consequence and nothing needs to be done. But if it regularly becomes infected and there is a "creamy and constant" discharge, Dr. Oz says you should speak with your doctor.
"Remember your entire bowel system was connected to your mother through that one little hole," he says. "So if it doesn't heal all the way when you're born, you can have a little bit of tissue in there that will continue to accumulate fluid and it will push it out."
One thing you absolutely should not do is use rubbing alcohol to clean that wound…or any wound, for that matter. "When you have a wound of any kind in your body, you never want to put a solution in there that you wouldn't put in your eyes," Dr. Oz says. "What happens when you use alcohol is you kill 50 [bad] bacteria, but you kill 500 million of your own defender cells. You want to use solutions that your body likes so you help the good guys."
Instead of a harsh cleanser, Dr. Oz recommends using a salt solution like the one used for the neti pot: about a quarter-teaspoon of salt mixed with warm water.
