Sometimes I cough up whitish things.. what are they?!
Question:
Sometimes I cough up whitish things.. what are they?
They are small (about the size of half of a pea, or smaller - they range in size) and sort of off-white. They smell really strongly, like really bad breath. This happens maybe two or three times a month, but sometimes I'll go for several months without any.
Anyone know what they are?
Answers:
A tonsillolith (also called tonsil stone or calculi of the tonsil or bad breath ball or stinky ball) is a piece (or more commonly, a cluster) of calcareous matter which forms in the rear of the mouth, in the crevasses (called "crypts") of the palatine tonsils (which are what most people commonly refer to as simply tonsils).
Tonsil stones, it is theorized, are the result of a combination of any of the following:
* food particles
* dead white blood cells (a.k.a. "leukocytes")
* oral bacteria, possibly from mouth breathing
* overactive salivary glands
They are described as having a pungent odor: halitosis concentrated into a small solid object. Visually, they may resemble sesame seeds in color and texture.
Protruding tonsilloliths have the feel of a foreign object, lodged between the outside of wisdom teeth and the temporomandibular joint region of the fleshed jaw. They may be an especially uncomfortable nuisance, but are not often harmful.