What is tonsillitis?
Tonsils are two small lymph nodes present on either side of the back of throat. Tonsils form a part of defense system and help to prevent from recurrent infections. When there is infection of the tonsils, it is called as tonsillitis. It can occur at any age. It is more common in children. It is diagnosed in children at preschool age and may continue till they reach teen age. There are different causes of tonsillitis. It is important to nip the evil in the bud otherwise it can create other serious health problems and complications. It is easy to diagnose.
What causes tonsillitis?
The most common cause of tonsillitis is viral or bacterial infection. Tonsils prevent your body from infection. They usually act as barrier against entry of bacteria and viruses into your body. But, tonsils become infected themselves while protecting your body. It is a contagious infection and gets easily transmitted from an infected person to a healthy person. Children who come in close contact with other children at school and play become exposed to a variety of viruses and bacteria. Therefore, children are more vulnerable to germs that cause infection of tonsils.
Symptoms of Tonsillitis
There are a wide variety of symptoms of tonsillitis. A person having tonsils infection may not have all the symptoms present at one time. The most common symptoms of tonsillitis are:
- Sore throat: Throat is quite painful. There is pain while eating, swallowing and drinking
- Sound gets changes. It becomes scratchy
- Fever and chills are present due to infection
- Body aches, headache is also common
- Earaches may be present due to spread of infection to the ears
- Bad breath and bad taste in the mouth
- Stiffness of neck occurs due to pain in the throat
- There is tenderness in the jaw and neck due to swollen lymph nodes
- Tonsils become red and swollen
- Tonsils may have white or yellow spots due to pus formation
- Some children may also show poor appetite, irritability and excessive drooling
How to cure tonsillitis?
Mild infection of tonsils does not require any treatment as it gets over within a few days. In conventional system, treatment for tonsillitis includes antibiotics to fight against bacterial infection. It is not a permanent solution. Some physicians recommend tonsillectomy or removal of the tonsils. It can cause further complications. Therefore, it is best to take natural remedies to get long lasting results.
Some useful tips are given here to reduce the symptoms:
- One should drink excess of fluids, it is good to take warm fluids to sooth the throat.
- Proper rest is advised to avoid contact with recurrent bacteria agents.
- One should do saline gargles two or three times in a day to get relief from sore throat.
- Humidifier should be used to moisten the air inside the room.
- Take half a cup of water and boil it. Add one or two leaves of basil and a small piece of ginger. Boil it. Add one teaspoon of honey and drink it slowly to get relief from pain.