Tonsil Stones - Removing Tonsil Stones

Have you ever coughed up little, white nuggets that smell terrible?

If you have, congratulations, because you might have tonsil stones.

And they’re really common. In fact, you might have them in your mouth right now.

Tonsil stones often occur if you’ve had repeated bouts of tonsillitis, or if you just

have large-ish tonsils with lots of nooks and crannies. You might not even know you

have them, cause they can grow behind the tonsil where you can’t see them.

There aren’t great estimates for how many people have tonsil stones. But in one small

study of 150 CT scans of people’s heads, about 24% showed signs of them. Though I’ve

seen other studies with higher and lower numbers, as well.

There’s some debate about how exactly they form, but what we know is that dead cells,

mucus, and food get trapped in the crevices of the tonsil and harden, or “calcify.”

Most of the time, the stones are so small that they don’t pose a problem. But when

they’re larger they can cause sore throats, ear pain, and really bad breath. That’s

because bacteria and other microbes will feast on the globs of organic matter, and the sulfurous

waste products they release give off a deeply unpleasant scent.

If you have tonsil stones and they bother you, some people recommend gargling with salt

water or other special mouthwashes, flushing them out with a water pick, or popping them

out with something soft like your finger or a cotton swab. And if the problem gets really

severe, your doctor might recommend a tonsillectomy or procedure to smooth out the tonsils.

On a personal note, I actually know what having tonsil stones is like. A bunch of years ago

I kept coming down with tonsillitis, and along with it I developed some small tonsil stones.

Because I’m me, I was kinda just fascinated by the whole thing. But, I was totally relieved

when they went away.

If you have tonsil stones, you may want to try this method here to get rid of them quickly and once and for all!