Why it feels weird to poke your belly button

The explanation we've all been waiting for. Photo / 123rf

If you've ever poked the inside of your belly button and felt a weird sensation inside your stomach, you are not alone.

Belly buttons are weird, their purpose after the umbilical chord is cut is pretty non-existent.

If you've poked your belly button and felt like you've needed to pee, you're not alone.

Dr Christopher Hollingsworth of NYC Surgical Associates said it's down to sensory nerve fibres in the internal lining of your stomach cavity. These relay information back to the spine in the exact same area as those of your bladder and urethra.

"At the navel, you have the ability to stimulate not only the skin overlying the navel, but also the fibers of the inner lining of your abdomen," said Dr Hollingsworth.

"So, as you stick your finger into your belly button, it sends a signal from the deeper fibres that line your inner abdominal cavity to your spinal cord.

"Because your spinal cord at that level is also relaying signals from your bladder and urethra, it feels almost the same. You interpret this as discomfort in your bladder."

Happy poking.