For some, they are the thing of nightmares – omphalophobia (the fear of belly buttons) is a real condition. Whatever your feelings about belly buttons, one thing’s for sure - it once joined you to your mother. The umbilical cord is severed at birth to leave just a small clamped stump that progressively withers and falls away a week or two later. From this point, the belly button seems to become redundant – other than to gather dust and fluff. This circulation is not needed after the baby is born, and once disconnected from the placenta the umbilical vessels naturally close up.

---

Persons: – omphalophobia, that’s, Mary Joseph Dempsey, William Mayo, Mary Joseph, Dempsey, Hamilton Bailey, Mary Joseph’s, caput, Medusa, Perseus, Dan Baumgardt Organizations: CNN, Mayo, of Physiology, University of Bristol Locations: Minnesota, Mayo, United Kingdom