Tonsil Stones

I have been getting Tonsil Stones on and off for about 6 years. I recently had a particually bad few weeks after moving out of my parents house and into a new apartment. I started getting stones on an almost daily basis rather than ocassionaly as before. I have managed to reduce the problem after realising what had changed in my diet. Firstly I found that I was rarely eating fruit anymore. Also I was eating much more bread, especially toast in the morning. About an hour after leaving the house in the morning I would feel a nasty taste in my mouth and when I got home, after a bit of digging the stones would appear. Now I scrub my tongue every morning and only eat fruit for breakfast. Believe it or not that has almost completely solved the problem for me. I have only suffered mildly from these stones so i'm sure this will not be a cure for most people. Mild sufferers like me might find this helpful.

They're most common with people who have larger crevices in their tonsils. I finally dislodged a rather large one a few hours ago - it was in an awkward place and I've been suffering with it for a week.
I used the round end of a bobby pin... I know it may sound odd but it worked, and I tried everything ( from a straw which made me bleed, to a tootbrush and my finger which only made me gag) I got it out with the bobby pin almost instantly.

I had my tonsils removed on Feb 1st. I suffered from Tonsil Stones and very large crypts in my tonsils for a bout a year.

I could use my fingers to get most of the stones out but sometimes I would use a bent paper clip which didn't work to well. My Dr. ask what I used to get them out with out of curiosity. He said, " I probably shouldn't tell you this but, I knew a lady who used the end of a potato peeler to dig the stones out." I thought, boy that would have worked better then what I used to try and get them out. A week later I would be getting them out anyways.

It's been a painful recovery no doubt, but weal worth not to have to deal with those little disgusting stones anymore!

The only thing I have found that works to eliminate these is nasal irrigation (sinus rinsing). I started doing this last year to help with allergy symptoms and to my surprise it completely cleared up the tonsil stone problem that I had for years. Seems way too simple to be true. I'm curious to know if it works for others. I mentioned this on another forum and it seemed to be almost entirely ignored for some reason. Guess the thought of squirting saline up your nose sounds too unpleasant. But it sure beats those stinky things. I actually find it quite pleasant (refreshing) and it's now the first thing I do EVERY morning. Please try it and report back.

Ive been geting these gross things for about 6 months now..i get the randomly though and always just thought they were food. Anyways i saw someone tip to try the closed end of the bobby bin...worked great! i got it in the first try without gagging! I had tried my finger, gargling, toothpick, sucking it with a syringe (minus the needle) and nothing worked.
So give a bobby pin a try. Also, after all the wonderful info i found on this site i feel so much better knowing im not crazy and other people get thse....but im going to start gargling daily, using a toungue scraper and nasal drops. I am a mouth breather so im betting this has a lot to do with it. Best of luck everyone

for all of you suffering form tonsil stones..i just went to an Ear Nose And Throat doctor...he said that after you are 20 years old the tonsils are basically useless and there is no problem taking them out...and yes Tonsil Stones are gross and smell bad im making an appointment to take my tonsils out asap. two weeks of downtime is well worth not having to have to deal with this ever again

I have been fighting with my doctors for quite a while now and they have no idea what these are. The Q-tip meathod works good but a good sinus spray helps too.

I have done some research on these and thought they were salivary gland stones. and initiate in the salivary glands. My mom had her tonsils out when she was 31. She still has the stones. She's in her 70's.

Hey, guys -

I just discovered what Tonsil Stones are, and I've had them for about 25 years! I was so glad to come across this forum, because now I know I am not the only one out there suffering from this! I read through your entries, and I have had the same symtoms: the first time, they came out with a strong sneeze onto my hand and I could NOT believe the foul smell! It basically smelled like bad breath! And then I discovered I could extract them with a q-tip, which is what I do about once or twice a week. Sometimes I'll get a really bad sore throat, and just "know" that I have a large stone in my tonsil - and sure enough, there it is! I also realized that they only get lodged in my left tonsil. It only looks like I only have 1 tonsil because it's so englarged and has the pockets, and the right tonsil is almost non-existent. Is this normal? I do have to say, that when I dieted and cut back on sweets and carbs and drank a TON of water every day, I almost completely eliminated the tonsil stones. They would appear only about one time a year, if that. There has to be a link to carbs/sweets and the stones. Maybe the hydration with water entry has some merit?

just to let anyone in doubt know... i had my tonsils removed in April 08, it's now August and I've not had a single problem since! Wish i'd done it sooner. Painful and not something to do lightly but after 2 weeks I was back on form and barely had even a sore throat since and NO tonsiloliths, infact i don't even think to look for them, i don't have the nasty taste, the nasty breath or the sensation of gagging. Also for those in the UK, I was booked on the NHS (my GP was great as was the ENT guy no questiosn just agreed with me) but I was bumped at the last minute and due to childcare arrangements i decided to go private which cost a whopping 2k but still like i said well worth every penny. I'm 30 so not a young'un and it did hurt but I've forgotten it all now and just so pleased! I'd recommend this route if you've had enough poking.