Having two true belly buttons is not something that occurs naturally, because every person develops from a single umbilical cord that leaves a single scar. But the question is not as absurd as it sounds. A handful of rare congenital conditions can produce openings or structures at the navel that closely mimic a second one, and certain surgeries deliberately create an entirely new navel after the original is lost or distorted. The real story involves embryology gone slightly off-script and the surprisingly creative world of reconstructive surgery.
Why You Get Exactly One
Your belly button is the scar left behind when your umbilical cord was clamped and fell off shortly after birth. During fetal development, the umbilical cord is the single lifeline connecting you to the placenta, carrying blood between your circulatory system and your mother’s. There is only one cord, so there is only one attachment site, and that site heals into what we call the navel.
The formation of the abdominal wall itself helps explain why there is no room for a second navel. Research on human embryos shows that the ventral (front) body wall forms through differential growth in the dorsal (back) part of the body, with the abdominal muscles expanding forward and downward to close the wall around a single midline opening where the cord passes through.1PubMed Central. Development of the ventral body wall in the human embryo The body essentially zips itself closed around one point. There is no developmental pathway that would produce a second umbilical attachment.
When Something Looks Like a Second Belly Button
Even though two genuine navels cannot form, certain congenital anomalies can create an opening at or near the umbilicus that looks startlingly like a second one. These are not true belly buttons, but they can fool the eye and occasionally even fool clinicians on first examination.
The most dramatic example involves a structure called the omphalomesenteric duct. During early embryonic life, this duct connects the developing gut to the yolk sac. It normally closes and disappears between the fifth and eighth weeks of development. When it fails to close entirely, the result is a patent omphalomesenteric duct: a direct, open channel running from the small intestine to the surface of the umbilicus. In one reported case, a two-month-old boy presented with a reddish, mucosal-lined tubular structure at his navel that simulated a second umbilical opening. Surgeons excised it, and tissue analysis confirmed it was lined with small bowel mucosa.2PubMed Central. Patent omphalomesenteric duct: sectioning the unexpected The structure protruded right next to the normal navel, producing what genuinely appeared to be a double belly button.
A similar phenomenon can originate from the urinary system. The urachus is a tube connecting the fetal bladder to the umbilicus, and like the omphalomesenteric duct, it is supposed to seal off before birth. A patent urachus remains open, creating a fistula between the bladder and the navel. One case involved a 17-year-old girl who presented with foul-smelling, bloody discharge from her umbilicus; doctors diagnosed a patent urachus, a condition usually caught in infancy. In her case, removing a recent belly button piercing appeared to have completed the fistulous tract to the skin, essentially opening a channel that had been almost but not quite sealed.3PubMed Central. Belly button piercings: a saving grace? A patent urachus presenting in a 17-year-old girl A patent urachus does not look exactly like a second navel in the cosmetic sense, but it does produce a visible, weeping opening at the umbilicus that can be mistaken for one.
Both conditions are rare. The key point is that when someone appears to have a second belly button, it is almost always an embryological remnant that failed to close on schedule, not a duplicate navel formed from a second cord.
Conjoined Twins and Shared Navels
If any scenario in nature comes close to producing something like two belly buttons on a single body, it is conjoined twinning. Conjoined twins who are fused at the abdomen, known as omphalopagus twins, share a single umbilical cord. When they are surgically separated, each twin needs a functioning abdominal wall, and the shared navel site belongs to only one of them. The other twin ends up with no belly button at all, unless surgeons create one.
A case report describing omphalopagus twins in Chad documented that the twins were conjoined over about four centimeters along the midline, from the xiphoid process down to the umbilical region, with a small omphalocele at the lower margin of the fusion where the single umbilical cord attached.4American Journal of Case Reports. Successful Separation of Female Omphalopagus Conjoined Twins at the Mother and Child University Hospital Center in N’Djamena, Chad: A Case Report After separation, reconstructing the abdominal wall for each twin is a major challenge, and fashioning a cosmetically acceptable navel for the twin who lost the shared one is a secondary surgical goal that may be addressed later.
So in the conjoined twin scenario, rather than two belly buttons appearing on one body, the problem is the opposite: one belly button needs to be shared between two bodies, and separation surgery often leaves one twin without any navel at all.
Surgically Created Navels
The most common real-world reason someone might end up with what could loosely be called a “second belly button” is surgery. Several procedures either destroy the original navel or relocate it, and surgeons then create a new one, sometimes called a neoumbilicus.
Abdominoplasty, commonly known as a tummy tuck, is the most frequent context. During a standard abdominoplasty, the surgeon separates the navel from the surrounding skin, tightens the abdominal wall, pulls the skin flap down, and cuts a new hole in the repositioned skin to bring the original navel stalk back through. But in vertical abdominoplasty techniques, the approach is different. One method described in the surgical literature creates what the authors call an “inner scar umbilicus,” where a new navel is fashioned with hidden internal sutures. In a study of 110 consecutive patients undergoing this procedure, all ended up with what the surgeons described as natural-looking, scarless new navels in correct position.5Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery. Inner Scar Umbilicus: New Horizons for Vertical Abdominoplasty About half of those patients had minor inflammatory exudate from the internal suture that resolved with simple dry dressings, but no serious complications like infection or tissue death occurred.
Neoumbilicus creation is also relevant for infants born with abdominal wall defects like omphalocele or gastroschisis, where the intestines or other organs protrude through the abdominal wall at birth. Repairing these defects often obliterates the original navel. Surgeons have developed techniques like advancement flap umbilicoplasty to construct a new navel after closing the wall. One study found that the reconstructed navels had near-normal appearance in terms of collar height and circumference, though they tended to sit slightly higher on the abdomen than a natural navel would.6Journal of Pediatric Surgery. Advancement flap umbilicoplasty after abdominal wall closure: Postoperative results compared with normal umbilical anatomy
In none of these cases does the patient end up with two belly buttons. The original is either repurposed or lost, and the new one replaces it. But the existence of these procedures means that some people are walking around with a belly button that is partly or entirely a surgical creation, which is closer to “having two belly buttons” in spirit than most people realize, even if only one is visible at a time.
Could a Scar Mimic One?
Outside of rare congenital conditions and planned surgery, the most common reason someone might think they have two belly buttons is much more mundane: a scar. Laparoscopic surgery frequently uses the navel as a port site, and the resulting scar can distort the navel’s shape or create a visible mark nearby that looks like a secondary indentation. Hernia repairs, particularly umbilical hernia repairs, can also change the navel’s appearance or leave scars that look like small additional depressions.
Cross-sectional imaging studies have noted that clinical signs of umbilical disorders tend to be nonspecific, meaning that an unusual lump, indentation, or discharge near the navel could represent many different things, from a hernia to a cyst to an embryological remnant.7PubMed. Imaging of the umbilicus and periumbilical region A scar or skin fold that looks like a second navel is far more likely to be one of these than an actual duplicate belly button.
Keloid scarring can further complicate things. People prone to keloids may develop raised, irregular scar tissue at the navel after surgery, piercing, or even minor trauma. When a keloid distorts the navel enough, surgeons sometimes reconstruct it to restore a more normal appearance, because the cosmetic result matters to patients in a way that goes beyond vanity.
Why the Navel Matters More Than You Would Think
The belly button has no function after birth. It is a scar, nothing more. Yet it occupies an outsized place in body image. Surgical literature explicitly acknowledges this: a missing or deformed umbilicus can lead to a distorted body image and psychological distress, including feelings of shame.8Archives of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Reconstruction of a deformed umbilicus with a keloid using a single triangular incision line: a case report This is why surgeons go to considerable trouble to reconstruct navels after tummy tucks, hernia repairs, and abdominal wall defect corrections rather than simply leaving the area flat.
The psychological weight of the belly button also explains why the question “can you have two?” captures attention. It touches on something that feels fundamental about human anatomy even though it is biologically trivial. People born without a visible navel, whether from surgical repair of a birth defect or from conjoined twin separation, sometimes seek umbilicoplasty purely for cosmetic and psychological reasons, even though the procedure has no medical benefit. The goal is to look “normal,” and in the context of human abdomens, normal means exactly one belly button in roughly the center of the abdomen.
The Internet Myths
Search for “two belly buttons” online and you will find a mix of body modification forums, joke answers, and occasional claims about people born with duplicates. The body modification angle is real but trivial: some people have had scarification or subdermal implants placed to create the cosmetic appearance of a second navel. That is body art, not anatomy.
The claims about people being born with two belly buttons are harder to pin down. No published case report in the medical literature describes a person with two genuine, cord-derived navels. The omphalomesenteric duct cases described earlier are the closest thing, and even those are a single true navel plus an abnormal opening that happens to be nearby. The distinction matters because a real belly button is a scar from the umbilical cord, and you only ever have one umbilical cord.
Another common misconception is that identical twins share a belly button or an umbilical cord. They do not. Each twin in a multiple pregnancy has a separate cord connecting to the placenta, even when identical twins share the same placenta. The only exception is the conjoined twin scenario discussed above, where incomplete separation in very early development can lead to a shared attachment point.
Belly Button Shapes and What Determines Them
While we are in navel territory, a related question people often have is what determines whether you end up with an “innie” or an “outie.” The common belief is that it depends on how the umbilical cord was cut or clamped at birth, but that is a myth. The cord is cut well away from the body, and the clamp sits on the remaining stump, which dries and falls off on its own. The resulting scar shape depends on factors below the surface: how much skin and subcutaneous tissue surrounds the attachment site, the structure of the underlying scar tissue, and whether there is any minor herniation pushing the scar outward.
An umbilical hernia, where a small loop of tissue pushes through the abdominal wall right at the navel, is the most common reason for an outie. Most umbilical hernias in infants close on their own by age four or five. In adults, they can persist or develop later, particularly during pregnancy or with significant weight gain. A hernia does not create a second belly button, but it can dramatically change the shape and prominence of the one you already have.
The position of the navel on the abdomen is also more variable than people assume. It typically sits near the midpoint of the torso, but the exact location varies with body proportions, and as the umbilicoplasty data shows, surgically reconstructed navels sometimes end up slightly higher than the natural position. For most people, this difference is unnoticeable, but it underscores how much of what we think of as “natural” belly button anatomy is actually flexible.
When to See a Doctor About Your Belly Button
If your navel starts leaking fluid, bleeding, or producing a foul smell, that warrants a visit to a doctor regardless of whether you think you are growing a second belly button. Persistent umbilical discharge in an infant can signal a patent omphalomesenteric duct or urachal remnant that needs surgical correction.2PubMed Central. Patent omphalomesenteric duct: sectioning the unexpected In older children and adults, discharge from the navel can also indicate an infected cyst, a urachal anomaly, or even an endometrioma in women of reproductive age.
The 17-year-old patient with the patent urachus is a useful cautionary tale for anyone with a belly button piercing. Most piercings heal fine, but if yours never quite stops weeping or if removing the jewelry triggers a sudden increase in discharge, the piercing may have disturbed an underlying structure that was otherwise causing no symptoms.3PubMed Central. Belly button piercings: a saving grace? A patent urachus presenting in a 17-year-old girl The condition is uncommon, but it is the kind of thing that is easy to dismiss as a minor infection when it is actually something more.
New lumps, bulges, or depressions around the navel also deserve attention. An umbilical hernia is usually harmless but can occasionally become incarcerated, meaning the protruding tissue gets trapped and its blood supply cut off. And because so many different conditions can present as nonspecific changes at the navel, imaging is often needed to sort out what is going on beneath the surface.7PubMed. Imaging of the umbilicus and periumbilical region A casual Google search cannot substitute for an ultrasound or CT scan when something at the belly button does not look or act right.