Applying castor oil in belly buttons and using a castor oil pack is the latest TikTok sensation. Castor oil is rich in ricinoleic acid, a stimulant constituent known to support healthy digestion. Anecdotal evidence says it soothes constipation and cramps associated with IBS and menstrual cramps. Advocates claim that just using it for an hour a day over three days soothes pain in their joints and muscles. All this by pouring castor oil into belly buttons and applying some heat. Let’s find out more!
Introducing Navel Pulling & Castor Oil in Belly Buttons
If you have never heard of putting castor oil in belly buttons, even doing it may seem like an incredibly weird thing to do, let alone that it should become an internet sensation!
Nevertheless, there is growing science to support the use of castor oil in belly buttons to support healthy circulation and detoxification and to soothe inflammation. Castor oil is used to balance hormones, to relieve abdominal bloating, and to soothe premenstrual cramps and endometriosis.
| Safety Notes about Putting Castor Oil in Belly Buttons |
|---|
|
1. Castor oil is an extremely stimulant agent. Therefore the practices outlined in this article should not be undertaken during menstruation. 2. This should also be avoided during pregnancy and breastfeeding. 3. These practices are also not advised for people who are currently taking laxative medications or ones that thin the blood. Because of the anticoagulant properties, using castor oil may not be suitable for people for those who suffer from platelet clotting disorders. |
What Is A Castor Oil Pack?
A castor oil pack can be as simple as an absorbent cloth placed over your body, with a piece of plastic to separate it from your heat source. Your heat source can be a hot water bottle, a heated belt, or a cushion.
It is important to understand the role of heat in applying your castor oil pack. It opens up the pores of the skin which helps your pores absorb the thick, unctuous oil more readily and carry it into your bloodstream. Of course, we all know how relieving just the heat alone can be when we are in pain.
Castor oil pack wraps are so popular right now there has been an online explosion of disposable castor oil pack wraps available to purchase. Though disposable ones seem like a good idea at the time, they aren’t the best thing for our planet, as they are hard to recycle. They are often too small for the area you want to cover as well.
Some castor oil pads are a little more complex and have a cotton core layer built to soak up the castor oil. The cotton core layers are made from cotton flannel and it is really easy to make your own. You can even make your own fully organic castor oil pack with organic cotton and organic castor oil.
I’d even suggest fashioning your own castor oil pack wrap and seeing how you get on before you go to the expense of buying a 10-pcs disposable castor oil pack or reusable ones and a heating pad, like the reusable one pictured above from Life-Giving Linen.
Why Put Castor Oil In Belly Buttons?
I appreciate you may be thinking ‘What’s the difference between rubbing castor oil into the skin and pouring drops of castor oil in a belly button’? It's a great question.
Marvel Of Nature
At the moment of your creation, the first thing to be ‘created’ was your navel. Those first initial cells multiplied to implant into your mother's womb. From there, sprang your umbilical cord and everything you needed to take nourishment from your mother and grow.
A lifeline of blood vessels, your umbilical cord brings you oxygen and nutrients, then removes deoxygenated blood and waste back to the placenta.
Petchoi Gland & Castor Oil In Belly Buttons
Now, there are no nerves in the umbilical cord itself which is why it does not hurt when the umbilical cord is severed after birth. However, more than 70,000 nerves and blood vessels converge at the navel.
Yes, you did read that right! 70,000! Incredible, isn’t it?
Ayurvedic practitioners know this convergence point as the Petchoi gland. However, rather than being an actual gland like the pituitary gland, for example, it is more of a theoretical point of great energy and absorption.
Just like when we pop a pill, it goes down into our stomach and our stomach processes it to be despatched into the bloodstream to be distributed throughout the body, this convergence of many blood vessels is seen as an extremely efficient gateway for oil to enter the system.
Look at it like that, and it does seem to make sense to be more effective than, say, just rubbing it into our abdomen.
However, we have to be real here and say that so far, science has neither proven nor disproven the theory.
What Is Castor Oil and Where Does It Come From?
The castor oil (Ricinus communis) plant should not be confused with the garden plant with glossy green leaves which many of us know as the Castor Oil Plant, namely Fatsia japonica. They are completely different plants and the vegetable oil extracted is actually from the seeds of the castor bean.
VINEVIDA’s Castor carrier oil comes from India, which is one of the world's biggest producers of castor oil for the health and wellbeing industry. Used for its medicinal and therapeutic properties in Ayurvedic medicine, Its origins can be traced to the ancient Egyptians and its indigenous homeland of Ethiopia.
Castor oil generally has a very pale coloring and does not have a strong scent, often it can be quite odorless. It is, however, very thick, glossy and unctuous. It is much thicker than most carrier oils and the glossy effect is sought after in lip balms and hair finishing products.
What Is So Good About Castor Oil?
Ricinoleic Acid
Castor oil is mostly composed of an unsaturated omega-9 fatty acid, ricinoleic acid
| Mass Spectroscopy Profile Of Castor Oil | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ricinoleic Acid | Oleic Acid | Linpleic Acid | Stearic Acid | Palmitic Acid | Linolenic Acid |
| 75.0% | 3.81% | 2.6% | 2.25% | 1.90% | 0.55% |
Ricinoleic acid has analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties. It is widely used by indigenous communities to induce the onset of labor and bring pain relief during labor and delivery. (Tunaru, 2012)
Interestingly, it has now been demonstrated that the human microbiota also produces Ricinoleic acid in the gut. (Jain, 2024) This has both an analgesic and anti-inflammatory ability (Jain, 2024) and can support healthy metabolism. However since Ricinoleic acid is a powerful stimulant laxative, castor oil should be used in moderation.
Oleic Acid
Castor oil has a small proportion of a monounsaturated fat known as oleic acid which is a monounsaturated fat. Research suggests oleic acid may help reduce the risk of heart disease and lower cholesterol. (Natali, 2007)
When it comes to our skin, oleic acid may help reduce damage caused by free radicals, in turn, this can help prevent our skin from becoming too dry and wrinkled and reduce the sign of aging skin by improving skin tone and plumpness.
Benefits Of Castor Oil In Belly Buttons
Ayurvedic practitioners have been applying castor oil in belly buttons to stimulate its absorption at the so-called Petchoi gland for centuries. These castor oil benefits are what traditional Ayurvedic and Chinese Traditional medicine practitioners have observed, along with other castor oil users across the world.
Supports Detoxification
The more recent craze of applying castor oil to belly buttons is born out of the claims that it detoxifies your system and helps you lose weight.
There is little science to support the weight loss theory of using castor oil in belly buttons, but that does not mean it does not have valid potential benefits.
Traditional users have reported improved functioning of the liver and kidneys and improved abdominal comfort.
If you look at our Castor Oil web page you will see that Liz says:
“It is also proven to enhance T11 cell action, improving lymphatic action. As well as increasing immunity, this may also add an interesting dimension to lymphatic drainage massages or cellulite treatments”.
Lymphatic drainage is the keystone to effective detoxification.
Supports Healthy Digestion
Ricinoleic acid reduces how much salt and fluid the small intestine absorbs. In so doing this increases the water content in stools which makes them softer and easier to pass.
Ricinoleic acid stimulates the bowels to encourage them to contract and move stools through the intestines.
Castor oil packs have proved useful for those experiencing constipation. A study (Arslan, 2011) on elderly residents of two rest homes in Turkey found that castor oil packs made a significant impact when compared to those patients who were not treated.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that colitis, Crohn's disease, inflammatory bowel disease, and IBS may be helped by castor oil. It may also help relieve the symptoms of GERD.
Care should be taken. Use too much and you can cause diarrhea. Likewise, abdominal cramps may be exacerbated by overstimulating bowel movements
Castor Oil and Inflammation
A small amount of castor oil has been proven to reduce the levels of a neurotransmitter called Substance P, a neurotransmitter that is indicated in pain signaling. (Viera, 2002)
As well as indications for conditions like IBS and Inflammatory Bowel Disease, castor may also prove useful for joint and muscular pain.
After all, we are not just restricting packs to castor oil in belly buttons. You can put castor oil packs pretty much anywhere! Try them on your knees, hips, and the bottom of your back, if that is where you experience pain. A useful way to use a castor oil pack may be to soothe symptoms of conditions such as rheumatism and arthritis.
Supports Women’s Health & Hormonal Balance
I’ve seen a lot of recommendations to use castor oil in belly buttons and castor oil packs to relieve menstrual cramps. However, castor oil packs would not be recommended during actual menstruation as they may make your cramps stronger and increase blood loss.
However, there is little to suggest that you cannot use it before you menstruate to relieve cramping.
Make your mind up on this and try it for yourself because there is plenty of anecdotal evidence to suggest it is helpful for hundreds of other women with endometriosis and painful conditions in the abdomen such as polycystic ovaries. There is also some anecdotal evidence to suggest that castor oil may help to balance your hormones, but the science is thin on the ground to support this.
I have to say though that I suffer from endometriosis and the part of my menstrual cycle that brings the most horror is from the point of ovulation right up until a day into menstruation. The cramps can be so severe I cannot move. I’d be loathe to stimulate my uterus any more than the cramping lesions are already doing.
Reduces Stress and Anxiety
The oil itself does not relieve stress and anxiety, but how you use Castor oil can affect reducing stress and anxiety.
Those applying castor oil in belly buttons and using castor oil pack treatments for up to an hour report feelings of deep relaxation, and reduced stress and often report feeling less anxious. Certainly, Ayurvedic clients seem to swear by the coincidental effects of using castor oil packs on their mental and spiritual well-being, as well as their physical well-being.
TikTok seems ablaze with people recommending castor oil in belly buttons and using castor oil packs regularly to feel better and uplift your mood. Try it for yourself and see what it does for you.
Supports Healthy Hair and Skin
You can use your bottle of castor oil for all sorts of applications, not just for applying castor oil to belly buttons! It has a long traditional history of being highly beneficial for both your skin and hair.
It is a wonderfully thick and unctuous oil, you can almost feel the nourishment in its viscosity. Because it is such a viscous oil it does not dry quickly, so it will sit on the skin doing its job beautifully for hours. Castor oil, like Glycerine, is a humectant, so when your skin needs a boost of hydration you can rely on humectants to pull moisture from the air and plop it directly into your skin cells. Along with that slow-drying protective layer, makes it a powerhouse of carrier oil.
It has wonderful moisturizing properties when applied to the skin or hair, where it will help to hydrate, reduce irritations, and soften the skin and hair. It has a gorgeous glossy finish that is highly sought after in hair and lip products.
It is widely used in commercial and aromatherapy massage oils where it is well known for its moisturizing and skin-softening properties.
How To Apply Castor Oil In Belly Buttons
It would be easy to assume that you just pour the castor oil in your belly button and you just lie there. Well, it is not quite that simple. Ideally, you need to create a castor oil pack and have a heat source to help the oil absorb into the skin more readily.
However, if you want to just pour castor oil into your belly button, who am I to stop you?
How To Make A Castor Oil Pack
First, you need to consider what part of your body you wish to apply your castor oil pack to because this is going to define the size that you need. You don’t need such a big castor oil pack for your knee as opposed to a castor oil pack wrap for belly buttons and abdomens.
For a pack suitable for use with castor oil in belly buttons, use the following instructions:
-
You need a large piece of clean cotton flannel or cotton muslin, the more absorbent the better, and yes, you can cut up an old cotton flannel sheet, just as long as it is clean.
-
Cut yourself four pieces that are approximately 12 ins x 14 ins. Unless, like me, there is a little more of you and you want a couple of extra inches in length to cover hip to hip. This is tailored to you, so cut the pieces to fit you.
-
Next, cut a slightly larger piece of plastic to act as a barrier between your oil-soaked fabric and your heat source. That’s it! Doodle right?
How To Apply A Castor Oil Pack
Safety Note: Always check with your doctor before using castor oil, especially if you are taking any kind of medication or have certain bowel conditions, abdominal concerns, or health problems. Do not apply castor oil packs or castor oil to belly buttons if you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or menstruating.
Just like the castor oil pack was easy to make, it is easy to apply. However, you do need to prep the area where you intend to lie to protect it from the castor oil that will inevitably drip down underneath you.
Instructions:
-
An old shower curtain, topped with an old towel or sheet is ideal, but then so are trash bags. Place this where you wish to lie and add that old sheet or towel for some warmth and comfort.
-
Have all your castor oil pack needs to hand so you can work quickly and easily and then you can just relax.
-
I find it easier to put the castor oil into a warm bowl and then soak the sheets in the bowl. This also allows me to let any excess drip off or even squeeze a little out. I find warming the oil a little makes it less shocking to your system, but don’t heat it too much, it does not need to be hot.
-
Saturate all four pieces of cotton flannel and lay them across your belly, you can pour a little castor oil into your belly button first if you wish, but it is going to drip into there anyway.
-
Lay the sheet of barrier plastic over the top and place your chosen heat source.
-
I actually like a blanket over me too, but that is just my preference.
-
Now comes the hard bit, doing nothing for an hour. I know, nothing. It’s crazy, right? But you can do it, I have faith in you. It will do you good to switch off, relax, and just ‘be’ for an hour. If it feels like torture, read, and listen to music, but make it relaxing.
-
It is suggested that the best efficacy is gained by doing this for an hour over consecutive three days over a period of four to six weeks. Three hours with castor oil in belly buttons over four to six weeks doesn’t sound so bad right?
Side Effects Of Applying Castor Oil In Belly Buttons
You do have to exercise a little common sense when you use castor oil. It is known to stimulate both the bowel and the uterus.
Therefore, I don’t recommend it for use in any great quantity while you are pregnant and I strongly advise against using castor oil pack treatments while pregnant. After all, women take castor oil internally to stimulate the onset of labor, so let’s avoid that eh? It is worth noting that it is best avoided during breastfeeding too.
There are recommendations that you should avoid castor oil packs when you are menstruating because of this stimulant effect.
As far as your bowels are concerned, ricinoleic acid stimulates the movements of the bowels and makes your stools looser and more fluid. It is not unusual to experience bouts of diarrhea after using castor oil and castor oil packs. It’s worth bearing this in mind when planning your castor oil packs and before using castor oil in belly buttons!
Some people experience more severe abdominal cramping, nausea, and diarrhea than others, cease use and consult your doctor if symptoms persist.
The European Medicines Agency advises using Castor oil in case of:
- Unexplained abdominal pain
- Narrowing or obstruction of the gut
- Atony, which is the loss of normal movement in the gut muscle
- Inflammatory diseases of the colon
- Appendicitis
- Severe dehydration
Allergic Reaction From Applying Castor Oil In Belly Button
Thankfully, allergic reactions to Castor oil are few and far between. However, the Drug Bank cites that people have experienced the following after using castor oil.
- Digestive tract irritation after ingesting orally
- Skin contact sensitization
- Contact dermatitis
Medication Interactions From Applying Castor Oil In Belly Button
If you are taking certain medications you need to be aware of how Castor oil can interact with some medications.
Pregnancy and Breastfeeding
I just want to reiterate here that castor oil should not be used while pregnant as it stimulates the uterus. It is also best avoided whilst breastfeeding, as its constituents can be carried through your breast milk and affect your baby.
Blood Thinner
There are some animal-based studies that suggest that Castor oil, especially when used for bowel issues, may affect how our blood clots. Therefore, if you are taking blood thinning medication we advise that you consult your doctor before using castor oil.
Laxatives
If you are taking laxatives, be mindful that castor has laxative effects and can stimulate your bowel. Using it as well as proprietary laxatives could lead to unwanted side effects like diarrhea dehydration and electrolyte imbalance.
Final Words
As you can see there is plenty of scientific evidence and anecdotal evidence to support the popular practice of using castor oil in belly buttons and castor oil packs.
It is a cheap and easy way to have a routine treatment regimen for lymphatic drainage and detoxification, relieving IBS, and supporting healthy joints and muscles.
While the scientific research is mixed on the benefits of castor oil, look to the anecdotal evidence, especially in Ayurvedic and Chinese Traditional Medicine. You will find centuries of consistent use for supporting detox, digestion, inflammation, and healthy joints and muscles.
Regular treatments with castor oil packs may also improve your stress and anxiety levels and make you feel more relaxed.
However you choose to use castor oil, be it in a castor oil pack or simply pouring castor oil in belly buttons, consult your doctor before trying this treatment if you are on medication.
