Even though most odors come from oral causes, there are some people who have odors coming from the tonsils and sinus areas often leading to bad breath. Many of those who write to me have expressed a need for information and treatment about tonsils with deep indentations in them which get filled with food and plaque that harden into a very foul smelling ball which is almost stone-like in some cases. These are sometimes cause by a condition called chronic cryptic tonsillitis and should then be addressed by an otolaryngology physician. Sometimes chronic cryptic tonsillitis must be treated by surgical removal of the tonsils. Most of the time these tonsilloliths are not associated with chronic cryptic tonsillitis. These tonsilloliths can be treated with limited success by the use of the hydro magnetic irrigator. Below is a typical letter from a patient who suffers from such a condition and then the response I wrote back to him. Please be advised that I have found quite a number of patients who have had their tonsils removed by physicians for this and other bad breath problems. This is usually NOT indicated and is a dangerous and unnecessary operation for most people.
The following is an inquiry from California:
I was wondering if anyone has looked into the tonsils as a factor in bad breath / halitosis. It seems that food particles get trapped in the tonsil crevices. The particles remain there for who knows how long. The particles seem to harden, and take on an awful odor. This is detected when one of the particles comes loose - sometimes after a cough or gag. The taste and smell of these particles is awful. Even my six year old boy coughed one up the other day. He removed several mushy particles from his mouth and was concerned because of the terrible taste and smell. I recognized it immediately as the stuff that gets trapped in the tonsils. Why haven't I heard any of these studies mention this problem? Not even the recent TV story on the subject. Surely, numerous people have encountered this problem. I would think it has to be a contributing factor in bad breath / halitosis. If so, what if anything can be done about it? Thanks.
The response is:
Yes, these have been known about for a long time and some people have a problem with them such as yourself. Most people do not. They can be controlled by some people with a water irrigation machine such as the hydro magnetic irrigator. That machine pulses water and can be directed to blast out the crypts in the tonsils. Not all these crypts can be seen and irrigated. Even better, one can place the rinse with zinc acetate in the water holder on the machine and get both the effect of the water blast and also the stabilized chlorine dioxide to deodorize the area. Most of the time these tonsilloliths do not cause bad breath and can be left alone.
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