Are your tonsils white and swollen? Does it feel like someone has injected your throat with a vile of bee stings causing your throat to swell up like a balloon? If so, then you most likely have a tonsil infection.

Tonsil infections are usually classified into a bacterial or a viral infection. The most common symptom is inflamed or swollen tonsils, also called tonsillitis. However, you may also suffer from a fever, headache, ear ache, sore throat, chills and aches. You also mostly likely are having trouble tasting, swallowing and talking.

There are several different ways to treat tonsillitis depending on what type of infection it is. For viral infections, you can ease the symptoms by taking pain medication and throat lozenges. However, there are no prescribed medications for viral infections. Like a cold or flu the virus will go away after a few days.

You can help relieve the symptoms by bathing in Epson salts, which can stop the fever and aches. You can also drink plenty of veggie juice which will boost your immune system and help your body fight the infection. You can also mix pure boiled water with turmeric and pepper powder which can coat the throat and stop the pain. Or you can mix lime with salt and water which can also soothe your burning throat.

To treat a tonsil infection caused by bacteria, you will need to take antibiotics. First you need to visit your doctor who will take a throat swab to confirm the presence of the strep bacteria. He will normally prescribe you with penicillin which must be taken for the allotted time. If you only take the pills until you feel better, the tonsil infection may come back. You need to finish your pills, even if your feel 100 percent better after a couple of days.

Unfortunately, penicillin or not, some people are prone to recurrent or chronic tonsillitis. In some serious and recurrent tonsil inflammation cases, or when the tonsils are constantly getting infected, you may consider having your tonsils removed. This is also called a tonsillectomy. Although the procedure is considered safe, there are certain costs and precautions that you need to consider and discuss with your doctor.

So if you look in the mirror and notice that your tonsils are swollen, there is no need to panic. Get some rest and take care of your body so the infection can clear up and you can get back to your normal, swollen-tonsil-free self.