ever cough up a white chunk?

Post Reply New Topic

it's hard, white or yellowish with maybe a tinge or gray. Sometimes, I'll feel something in my throat and I'll try coughing up whatever it is and find that it's one of these chunks.

I just tried to look it up. Some idiots around the internet, you know? They say it's tonsil stones or something coming from your sinuses.

wrong.

It's tiny bits of partially digested food. Know how I know? I burned one once and it was kinda reactive. Anything like a stone or matter from your sinus wouldn't react to flame like it did.

It`s just the body getting rid of things it dont need i think
good to get rid of no matter what it is

Yep, frequently. They're nasty to get rid of...

I used to have these when I was a teenager. Do you eat a lot of potatoes?

I used to and come to think of it, I used to get them a lot when I ate potatoes every day.

Uhh... yeah I do get those sometimes.

Not the most pleasant thing to admit.

I think they may be like big old clumps of plaque or food. They smell like s**t.

That happens to me too sometimes, but the chunks are really small...

Nobody besides you has mentioned that, so I worried that it wasn't normal that mine "smell like sh**". And whenever I've taken a chunk out of my mouth with my hand or coughed/spat it into my hand, my hand ends up smelling the same...

I always thought it's dried saliva from snoring

*Barf

I discovered that potatoes were the most likely culprit for this phenominon when I was about 13 or so. What happens is that when you chew them, a lot of times you don't swallow the entire thing, and what doesn't get swallowed gets stuck in the surface of your throat, and undergoes bacterial fermentation, hence the bad smell. --Nothing really to be concerned about.

The foul-smelling crud you are describing, also known as 'cheese-balls', is very likely from the crypts in your tonsils.

Getting a tonsillectomy will end the problem forever - I know, because that is what I finally did.

The bonus: no more sore throats, sinus infections or that horrible taste and smell.

Read on:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonsillolith

I was afraid they were bits of lung I was coughing up

HA! Same here!

Fogman, is there anything you don't know? I'm coming to you from now on with my questions.

Greeney gobs with hard chunks, when I had pneumonia last january. Almost died, I couldn't swallow that greeny and nearly barfed

Colors of phlegm

Phlegm may be of several different colors.

* "Healthy" phlegm is normally clear or white; however, the initial state of the common flu when the phlegm is still clear can also be the most infectious period.
* Yellow phlegm means that the immune system is responding.[citation needed] It is commonly taken to be a sign of bacterial infection and physicians often prescribe antibiotics as a results. When the cause is a viral infection such as influenza or the common cold, this treatment is thought to be incorrect. The development of antibiotic resistance may result from such overprescription.[1]
* Greenish or brownish phlegm is nearly always a sign of infection. Greenish or rusty phlegm or phlegm with rusty spots can also be a sign of pneumonia and/or internal micro-bleedings.[citation needed]
* Coughing up brown phlegm is usual for those who smoke. This is due to resin sticking to the viscous texture of the phlegm and being ejected by the body.[citation needed]
* Another type of phlegm often associated with smoking is brownish gray in color. This variant is encased in clear saliva. When spread out, the brown-gray "core" is shown to be grainy in composition, as opposed to holding together. This is simply dust and other foreign matter and may be caused by damage to the cilia, as in COPD patients.[citation needed]

keep in mind the 'healthy' phlegm is often caused by asthma, when you have asthma the inflammation causes phlegm

it's not phlegm