The belly button marks the exact spot where your umbilical cord was once attached—the vital connection that provided oxygen and nutrients in the womb. Once you started breathing, eating, and discharging waste on your own, this cord was no longer needed. What remains is a mark, a reminder of your months in your mother’s womb. However, it often gets ignored as you grow up. And there is nothing wrong with that. Your belly button does not require a special skincare routine, but neglecting its hygiene can lead to a buildup of bacteria, potentially causing a smelly discharge.

But generally, a discharge from your belly button is normal and colourless. According to experts, normal discharge is typically clear or light-coloured, has a slight odor (similar to sweat), and has no pain or redness around the navel.

What happens when you get a Bacterial or yeast infection in the belly button?

Experts say that the most common funk you might encounter in your belly button is a bacterial or fungal infection. A study titled

A Jungle in There: Bacteria in Belly Buttons are Highly Diverse, but Predictable published in 2012 in PLOS One Journal states that once rarefied to four hundred reads per sample, bacterial communities from belly buttons proved to be at least as diverse as communities known from other skin studies (on average 67 bacterial phylotypes per belly button).

This occurs due to poor hygiene, excessive sweating, or trapped moisture. Other conditions include navel piercings, cysts, and skin conditions like eczema or psoriasis. People with diabetes are particularly susceptible to fungal infections such as candidiasis if their blood sugar isn't under control, according to a 2019 review in the Journal of Clinical Medicine.

Bacteria and fungi love the dark environment of your belly button. If your belly button is infected, you might notice some redness or swelling. The discharge might look like pus, making your belly button smell bad. If it's a yeast infection, your belly button might also itch.

What happens when your navel piercing gets wrong?

Belly button or naval piercing, if infected, can lead to severe pain, discolouration, swelling, discharge and pus. It can also cause the skin to appear red, causing delayed or failed healing.

Other common signs include:

Chills or fever

Persistent pain or inflammation

Sensitivity or discomfort when moving

Swelling or tenderness to touch

When Should You See A Doctor?

Your weight not only affects your heart health but also your brain health. A recent study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism has revealed a powerful connection between your body weight, heart and brain.

After studying over 500,000 people, scientists discovered that having a high Body Mass Index (BMI) can nearly double your chances of developing brain-related illnesses later in life, which confirms that being overweight and having high blood pressure are not just general health concerns, they are direct causes of dementia.

How Does Your Weight Affect Brain Health?

The study focused heavily on vascular dementia, a specific type of memory loss that occurs when the brain is damaged because of a lack of blood flow.

Think of your blood vessels like a system of pipes. If those pipes are narrowed or blocked due to weight-related issues, the "engine" (your brain) doesn't get the fuel it needs. Over time, this lack of oxygen and nutrients leads to permanent brain damage and the loss of memory and thinking skills.

Researchers found that high blood pressure, often caused by carrying extra weight, is the main "middleman" in this process. Blood pressure is measured with two numbers, and both play a part in brain health:

Systolic

This is the pressure when your heart beats. It accounts for about 18 percent of the link between obesity and dementia.

Diastolic

This is the pressure when your heart rests between beats. It accounts for about 25 percent of the link. When these numbers stay high, they constantly "batter" the delicate vessels in the brain, causing them to weaken or clog.

How Weight Affects the Brain

Beyond just blood flow, a high BMI impacts the brain in several other ways:

Increased Inflammation

Obesity often causes the body to be in a constant state of "alarm" or inflammation. This can irritate the immune system and eventually damage brain cells.

Metabolism Issues

When the body struggles to process energy and food properly, it changes how the brain uses energy, which can lead to cognitive decline.

Heart Strain

A heart that has to work harder to pump blood through a larger body eventually becomes less efficient at sending blood all the way up to the brain. Your heart essentially has to do twice as much work as it would at a lower weight.

Can Preventing Obesity Help Dementia?

The most encouraging takeaway from this study is that dementia isn't always a matter of bad luck or "old age." Researchers call this an unexploited opportunity.

By managing your weight and blood pressure early in life, through a healthy diet, consistent exercise, and good sleep, you are essentially "dementia-proofing" your brain. The researchers suggested that intervening early, possibly even with weight-loss medications before symptoms start, could be a key strategy for protecting brain health in the future.

How Much Does Obesity Affect Worldwide?

According to the World Health Organization, one in eight people in the world are living with obesity. In 2022, about 2.5 billion adults were overweight. Causes of it vary, from things like diseases or chronic conditions, to the kind of food that is available to consume.

Heart attacks need immediate intervention and Dr. Balbir revealed one medicine that can save a life when this happens: Aspirin. In an interview with HealthandMe, Dr. Singh revealed that one does not need fancy equipment to help a person having a heart attack.

“If the history of the family history or cholesterol or diabetic. This patient is at risk, so what is the medicine if you get such a symptom? Aspirin.”

What Medicine Can Help a Heart Attack?

Dr. Singh points out that if you or someone near you begins to experience symptoms of a heart attack, such as heavy chest pain, pressure, or unexplained sweating, taking a dissolvable aspirin immediately can be a lifesaver.

By dissolving a tablet (like Dispirin) in a glass of water and drinking it, the medicine dissolves into the bloodstream much more quickly than simply ingesting it.

Aspirin works by thinning the blood and preventing further clotting in the arteries, which can stop a heart attack from getting worse before medical professionals arrive.

Other Preventative Measures To Take For Heart Attack

Before medical professionals arrive, performing CPR can also help save a person's life; however, one must know the right way to do CPR.

While speaking to HealthandMe, Dr Singh mentioned a viral video where a person collapses and someone attempts to give them CPR while they are still sitting in a chair, notng that this was 'a dangerous mistake' and people should steer clear away from such false videos.

He explained that you cannot perform CPR on someone who is sitting up as the body must be positioned correctly for the heart and lungs to receive the benefit of the chest compressions.

Without the proper technique, blood will not reach the brain and your efforts will not help the patient. Understanding the proper sequence of events is the difference between a failed attempt and a saved life.

Step 1: The Importance of Positioning

If someone collapses, immediately place them flat on their back on a hard floor. You need the ground's resistance to pump the heart manually. In this position, the heart is "sandwiched" between the rib cage and spine. On a soft bed, your presses will fail to squeeze the heart effectively.

Step 2: Focus on the Heart First

Dr. Singh emphasizes that restarting the heart is the absolute priority. Place both hands in the center of the chest and use your body weight to press firmly. By pushing the rib cage toward the spine, you force the heart to pump. Often, once circulation starts, the patient begins breathing again spontaneously.

Step 3: The Proper CPR Sequence

If the person doesn't wake up, begin a rhythm of three chest presses followed by one mouth-to-mouth breath. Lock your elbows and press hard to ensure the heart is being squeezed between the bones. This specific cycle keeps oxygenated blood moving to the brain, preventing permanent damage during a cardiac emergency.

How Common Are Heart Attacks?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, heart attacks claim a life every 34 seconds. In 2023, it caused nearly 920,000 deaths, one in every three recorded. Hence it is important to know not just the ways to help when someone has a heart attack but also how to prevent them.

Heart attacks need immediate intervention, and Dr. Balbir revealed one medicine that can save a life when this is happening: Aspirin. In an interview with HealthandMe, Dr. Balbir Singh revealed that one does not need fancy equipment to help a person having a heart attack.

“If the history of the family history or cholesterol or diabetic. This patient is at risk, so what is the medicine if you get such a symptom? Aspirin.”

What Medicine Can Help a Heart Attack?

Dr. Singh points out that if you or someone near you begins to experience symptoms of a heart attack, such as heavy chest pain, pressure, or unexplained sweating, taking a dissolvable aspirin immediately can be a lifesaver.

By dissolving a tablet (like Dispirin) in a glass of water and drinking it, the medicine enters the bloodstream quickly.

Aspirin works by thinning the blood and preventing further clotting in the arteries, which can stop a heart attack from getting worse before medical professionals arrive.

Other Preventative Measures To Take For Heart Attack

Before medical professionals arrive, doing CPR also helps; however, one must know the right way to do CPR.

There is a lot of misinformation online. Dr. Singh mentions a viral video where a person collapses and someone attempts to give them CPR while they are still sitting in a chair. This is a dangerous mistake.

He explained that you cannot perform CPR on someone who is sitting up. The body must be positioned correctly for the heart and lungs to receive the benefit of the chest compressions. If the technique is wrong, the blood will not reach the brain, and your efforts will not help the patient. Understanding the proper sequence of events is the difference between a failed attempt and a saved life.

Step 1: The Importance of Positioning

If someone collapses, immediately place them flat on their back on a hard floor. You need the ground's resistance to pump the heart manually. In this position, the heart is "sandwiched" between the rib cage and spine. On a soft bed, your presses will fail to squeeze the heart effectively.

Step 2: Focus on the Heart First

Dr. Singh emphasizes that restarting the heart is the absolute priority. Place both hands in the center of the chest and use your body weight to press firmly. By pushing the rib cage toward the spine, you force the heart to pump. Often, once circulation starts, the patient begins breathing again spontaneously.

Step 3: The Proper CPR Sequence

If the person doesn't wake up, begin a rhythm of three chest presses followed by one mouth-to-mouth breath. Lock your elbows and press hard to ensure the heart is being squeezed between the bones. This specific cycle keeps oxygenated blood moving to the brain, preventing permanent damage during a cardiac emergency.

How Common Are Heart Attacks?

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, heart attacks claim a life every 34 seconds. In 2023, it caused nearly 920,000 deaths, one in every three recorded. Hence it is important to know not just the ways to help when someone has a heart attack but also how to prevent them.