If you read my introductory post you will know that I have, over the years, learned a thing or two about tonsil stones and would class myself as been an expert at their removal, I love getting rid of them!
Tonsil stones smell, tonsil stones stink they can be sore and people just want to get rid of them, however, regardless of how unpopular these white lumps are (or sometimes yellow) there has never been any seriously extensive research done into them on a clinical level. Because tonsilloliths are more of a nuisance than anything else (they just cause bad breath, ear pain and discomfort not cancer as some scaremongers would have you believe) they have never really justified a medical research investment. Most of the tonsillitis treatment comes down to common sense, good oral hygiene and having a strong stomach when working with something that truly stinks!
There are a lot of natural ways to get rid of tonsil stones but before you start buying everything you have seen recommended online the most sensible first step is to see if you can just pop them out. Not everyone has the tongue flexibility to do this but for the people who do it can be the easiest way to do things.
Generally if you can feel the stone with your tongue you should be able to flick it out if you press on and around the area a few times. If this does not work you could try been more aggressive and using your finger. I would say this is the best approach and first step in trying to remove a stone, if this does not work for you then perhaps some of the below solutions would be better suited to you. Most of the below will help get rid of tonsil stones, however, they are really things that, if done regularly will prevent tonsil stones from forming.
Gargle With Salt Water
Salt water is sort of one of those traditional remedies that you might have heard your grandmother talk about, one thing to stress though, it’s a not an instant cure more of a way of preventing tonsil stones, however, it should help with getting rid of any you may have already. You could actually use any mouthwash in place of salt water as mouthwashes and salt water basically will do the same thing here. The objective is to kill the bacteria and this will prevent the stones from forming.Drinking Water
No one really knows why this works but saying that no one actually knows what the tonsils are for either so it may just be a case of if something works then don’t overly question it!Lots of medical resources report that you can reduce the likelihood of tonsil stones forming by regular drinking of water. Most people don’t drink enough water, a small glass every few hours is not enough and you should not sip the water. You want to pour the water, at room temperature, into your throat and have a proper drink. Feel the water flowing over your tonsils every hour.
This is one of the most effective ways of combating tonsil stones.
Tonsil Stones Seem To Form At Night
Anyone who knows anything about oral hygiene will know that your mouth is a hive of bacteria and that this bacteria really multiplies at night. It is a good idea to check for stones first thing in a morning and see if any monsters have formed overnight, if so get rid of them as quickly as possible do not allow them to linger throughout the morning.Open Your Mouth In the Shower
This is one of the easiest ways to prevent tonsil stones is to open up your mouth in the shower. There a little more to it than that, try opening your mouth and the back of your throat and allowing the water to jet into your mouth directly onto your tonsils. This is not as effective as regularly drinking water as a long term preventative cure but is definitely helps using the same principle, water rushing over your tonsils obviously helps to cleanse them.Using Your Toothbush
When you ask your dentist about toothbrushes you will usually be told that it doesn’t make a difference if you use an electric or manual toothbrush when you clean your teeth and mouth, however, when it comes to removing tonsil stones I find an electric toothbrush as a big advantage because of the shape of the head and how it vibrates.Choose an electric toothbrush that has a small round and rotating head and press that against the tonsil wall which you want to remove the stone from with the brush turned off, once you have established position turn the brush on and the rotation combined with the vibration should shake the stones loose in a few seconds.
Using A Cotton Bud
Some people who have a massive gag reflex really struggle with touching their tonsils even with their own tongue, if this is the case a wet cotton bud if often the best solution. You could also dip the bud in mouthwash an sort of combine this with the salt water method.Adjust Your Diet
It seems that certain foods can seriously increase the likelihood, speed of forming and size of tonsil stones. How long tonsil stones take to form varies from person to person but in the “right” conditions (right breeding ground for bacteria not the oral condition you should aspire to!) a fairly large stone could form overnight.I noticed in my twenties that, when I was training vigorously and taking supplements that the number of stones I was finding greatly increased. I put this down to a three things:
- A reduction in the intake of pure water
- An increase in dairy products
- An increase in protein in my diet
High protein diets have been linked to liver and kindly issues including the formation of stones, I don’t know for sure if these “stones” are exactly the same or even similar to tonsil stones but there is no smoke without fire and both tonsil and kidney stones are related to accumulation of bacteria. As well as the similarities in the formation of stones the treatment of kidney and liver issues are similar recommendations to the natural treatment of tonsil stones such as drinking more water and watching your diet.
Smoking And Tonsil Stones
Smoking increases the amount of bacteria in the mouth and throat, as tonsil stones are growing bacteria smoking improves the breeding ground in which the bacteria lives, stopping smoking wont totally prevent tonsil stones but will make their growth more difficult.All Of The Above Methods
All of the above methods will actually clean your tonsils and you may find that you wash out debris such and mucus and food particles which have become trapped in the tonsils, this should help prevent stones forming in the future.When Natural Treatment Of Tonsil Stones Fails
Before reading this section I would advise you to go back to the top of the page and re read everything else first. Just as we advised trying to relieve tonsil stones with your tongue or finger before moving onto the natural remedies it would make a lot of sense to try the above natural tonsil stone treatments before looking into a medicated or surgical solution, however, if you feel as though your tonsil stones are becoming infected to not hesitate to pursue a more aggressive solution. If bad breath is you biggest worry then perhaps you are better continuing to focus on dislodging the tonsil stone yourself.Medical Solutions For When Home Remedies Don’t Work
Antibiotics for tonsil stones
Antibiotics can be used to treat tonsil stones, however, they are not really a long term solution. The antibiotics can treat the stones as they are and may be prescribed if you have a particularly bad case, however, they will not treat the cause or prevent the stones from returning.Tonsillectomy to treat tonsil stones
A tonsillectomy is perhaps the most extreme way of treating tonsil stones, it is such an extreme process that it is highly unlikely this would be recommended to treat tonsil stones alone unless there were serious additional complications. The process used to carry out a tonsillectomy is quite brutal and you may need two weeks to recover, a tonsillectomy is more commonly known as “having your tonsils out”.Cryptolsis as a tonsil stone treatment
To over simplify it cryptolsis is basically a toned down version of a tonsillectomy, it takes much less time to recover from and it you can undergo the procedure awake without even the need to anaesthetic. The objective of a successful cryptolsis is to remove the cavities from the tonsils in which the bacteria breeds and the stones develop.I will write a section providing more details on the surgical and prescribed tonsil stone cures over the next few days.
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