Navel lint, or more commonly belly button lint or navel fluff, is an accumulation of fluffy fibres in one's
navel. Many people find that, at the beginning and end of the day, a small lump of fluff has appeared in the navel cavity. The reasons for this have been the subject of idle speculation for many years but in
2001, Dr.
Karl Kruszelnicki of the
University of Sydney,
Australia, undertook a systematic survey to determine the ins and outs of navel lint. His primary findings were as follows:Navel lint consists primarily of stray fibers from one's clothing, mixed with some dead skin cells and strands of
body hair. Contrary to expectations, navel lint appears to migrate upwards from underwear rather than downwards from shirts or tops. The migration process is the result of the frictional drag of body hair on underwear, which drags stray fibers up into the navel.Women experience less navel lint because of their finer and shorter body hairs. Conversely, older men experience it more because of their coarser and more numerous hairs.Navel lint's characteristic
blue-
gray tint is likely the averaging of the colors of fibers present in
clothing; the same color as
clothes dryer lint.The existence of navel lint is entirely harmless, and requires no corrective action.
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