Can I pierce my outie belly button if I had a hernia as a baby? (photo)

Question

When I was only a couple months old I had surgery on my belly which made a huge hole in my stomach and my mom had to stuck gauze in there for it to heal inside out. I haven't had any problems since. Now I'm turning 16 and I want to get my outie belly button pierced? Is that such a good idea?

Mariam Awada, MD, FACS · Answer

Hello, thank you for your inquiry. I do not recommend you pierce your belly button. I would see your doctor to make sure you first do not have a umbilical hernia. Also, in general, belly piercings may cause scaring and excess stretch marks if you want to get pregnant in the future. Best of luck to you!

Joseph L. Grzeskiewicz, MD, FACS · Answer

Being a dad with two daughters of my own, both of whom wanted their belly buttons pierced as teen agers so badly they could taste it - they are now 23 and 20 years old, grown up and able to decide these things for themselves - I feel well qualified to answer your question.  In addition to the  fact that these types of procedures have very real risks that young people may not always consider, the fact that you have an "outie" is a real concern to me as well.  Young people always want to be in fashion and do what everyone else is doing, and this makes it tough to listen to reason sometimes.  I will commend you however for even being here and asking this question, because most people your age wouldn't show the maturity to put their ego aside and solicit expert opinions like this.  They would rather sneak off and just do what they want to do!  (Fortunately, my daughters didn't do that either!)  In addition to potentially weakening the tissues around your belly button so that you may get increased scarring or stretch mark formation around your belly button with pregnancy or weight gain in the future, the fact that you have an "outie" means that you already have an intrinsic weakness of the tissues of the belly button.  You may even have a small hernia in the belly button, and if this is the case, piercing through that could cause some injury or infection to the organs inside your tummy.  Although these risks may seem small and insignificant, they are very real and not to be taken lightly.  My advice is to be different than the majority of girls out there - get a new hairstyle or some beautiful earrings, and do the most important thing of all:  be a warm, engaging, interesting girl, which will go so much farther in attracting others than any belly button piercing ever could.  And leave the belly rings for other people.

Can I pierce my outie belly button if I had a hernia as a baby? (photo)

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Can I pierce my outie belly button if I had a hernia as a baby? (photo)

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Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Umbilical Hernia Repair

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.