I have holes that run along the tonsils, food gets trapped in there and bacteria builds up. Is removal of tonsiles the only option? Knowledge Base > Dentistry > Oral Surgery
Tonsil stones! by animalgirlsr 24 mon 1 of 1 (100%)
The "food particles" you are experiencing are actually called tonsil stones. The medical term is "tonsilloliths". Aside from the foul odor and the annoyance they are harmless. If you plan on having your tonsils removed due to this problem, you should print out this article and bring it to your doctor first. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonsilloliths
Doctors commonly misdiagnose these symptoms and believe it to be tonsilitis. I have the same condition and had been lead to believe that I had tonsilitis although the doctor "just can't understand how I could be feeling no pain". My friend's neighbor died due to her tonsillectomy. She began to hemmorhage and did not make it to the hospital in time to stop it before it killed her. This obviously frightened me and I decided to research it a little more. That is when I found that I do not need a tonsillectomy. In fact I also discovered that tonsils play a vital role in the maintaining of my health. They trap bacteria to prevent illness. No wonder I have chunks of bacteria in my tonsils! It simply means that they have been doing their job, and I have overloaded them. If you have this problem you need to clean them out, because as long as they are in there, your tonsils cannot function properly.
I had mine removed at aged 21 by Janey444 3 year 2 of 3 (66%)
It was the MOST PAINFULL proceedure I have ever had done. I still get sore throats and still get white pusy craters in the area where my tonsils once were. When they remove your tonsils it doesn't leave a nice smooth area there so I'm not sure it will help your cause.
Also if you sing or do anything where you use your voice alot I found my voice has never been quite the same and becomes very raspy quite often even now.
As for bad breath you can get antibacterial throat sprays which might help. Avoiding milk & cheese help too.
I had my tonsils removed when I was 18 for virtually the same reason. I never got infections. I was just always digging that stuff out. It was gross. Sorry, no new ideas. Removal is what helped me :).
I just saw my doctor and he recommended gargling with Peroxide.
Step1Put one cap-full of 3% hydrogen peroxide into a cup.
Step2Dilute the hydrogen peroxide with one cap-full of warm water.
Step3Pour the mixture into your mouth, but do not swallow.
Step4Swish the liquid around so that it is moved between your teeth. This will kill bacteria on the gums.
Step5Gargle the liquid by tilting your head back, opening your mouth and exhaling out of your throat. This will help to kill the bacteria that cause sore throats.
Step6Prevent swallowing by closing your mouth and continuing to exhale out of your throat as you lower your head over a sink.
Step7Spit all of the liquid into the sink.
Hope this helps someone out there to rid of the food particles.
I to have the same problem, not really knowing how bad my breath was until some very embrassing situations. I have not had my tonsils removed at this time, I have decided to follow a very intense hygene routine. I have a syringe with a flat tip that I use to spray out the tonsil area. I use a flash light to illuminate the area, and actually spray out both sides of the tonsils several times every other day. This appears to work for me. I have not had any embrassing situations with my breath, and I don't experience a foul taste when drinking water or at other times. I actually spray in, around, up and behind the tonsils. The particles usually flow from the hidden pockets. This is now just like the routine of brushing my teeth. If you decide to try it, I hope it works for you too.
Hi,
I had the same problem, pits in my tonsils where food would collect and bacteria would grow resulting in terrible bad breath. I lived with it for 5 years. I would carry around mouth wash, and constantly clean my tonsil area. I finally had my tonsils removed. As an adult, healing from the surgery is tough. It took 11 days before I felt better, and the docs don't like to prescribe enough pain medicine. If you decide to have them taken out, be prepared with someone to take care of you and extra pain medicine. The doctor said getting up and moving around would help, but it didn't. Looking back, I would do it again. I don't have as many colds, nor the terrible taste in my mouth.
35 y.o. and I still have that problem... by wbtaunya 3 year 0 of 1 (0%)
I worked for a pediatrician and she told me that it is called caverous (like caverns) tonsil. From what I remember, when you are young, I think if you go through a big growth spurt and the tonsils end up tearing due to it didnt grow as fast as the rest of your body. I think that is what she said....it has been many yrs ago since I asked her and no longer work there. I have the same probl and what I do and have found out that when I was on the Atkins diet, I had no probl with stuff getting stuck in there. I think it may be a build up of starches in the tiny holes. Since the diet, I have gone back to my prev ways of eating and have noted that I have had probl eversince. I get a flash light and a baby nasal aspirator (the kind that the hosp use with a long tip) and just suck those bad boys out. If I dont do it, they drive me crazy and I end up with a sore throat. I can control my gag reflex pretty well, My husband would throw up if he tried it, he gags just brushing his tongue. Lucky him, he doesnt have our probl. I even thought of maybe squirting some evoo (extra virgin olive oil) on the tinsil to lube it up, what the heck, they say evoo is goood for you anyway.
I have never heard of anyone else having this problem. I thought I was the only one!
I found when I drank a lot of coffee with coffeemate, I had this problem. I drink less coffee now, and I haven't noticed the 'craters', but I still have the bad breath.
I visited the dentist, and the hygenist said that her husband had bad breath until he had his tonsils removed. This seemed to help him.
Sprays will only mask the odor of the material in the 'craters'. It smells really bad.
I would really be interested in an answer to the problem.