Whenever I hear “tonsils are not very important, right? So if they give you problems, it is better to have them removed”, it makes me very uneasy. In homeopathy, we look for what sits behind repeated infections. That work happens alongside your doctor’s care, and any decision about surgery is one to make with them. In this article I share the remedies I use in my practice for acute tonsillitis and sore throats.
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The tonsils are a collection of lymphatic tissue located at the back of the throat. The tonsils play a very important role in the body’s defence against diseases, and not many people know that!

Together with the adenoids, they are OUR FIRST LINE OF DEFENCE, filtering and fighting viruses and bacteria and stimulating immunity.  

When they become overwhelmed by infection, they may swell up and cause discomfort causing what we will call tonsillitis.

Many people think tonsils do not matter because you can live without them. They are one working part of your lymphatic system.

Whether to have tonsils taken out is a decision for you and your doctor. The NHS says surgery is rarely needed, and is mostly kept for severe tonsillitis that returns again and again. In my practice I look first at what may sit behind repeated infections. Read more about recurrent tonsillitis in children.

Homeopathy is very effective in reducing acute tonsillitis, and deeper treatment can help ensure we get fewer recurrent infections with time.

WHAT IS STREP THROAT

One of the common problems affecting our tonsils is Strep Throat.

Strep Throat is a bacterial infection that affects your throat. Symptoms include:

• very painful throat
• fever
• headache
• swollen tonsils with white patches of pus
• swollen tender lymph nodes on your neck
• painful swallowing
• a rash

The symptoms of Strep Throat can be very similar to tonsillitis, and only a test can determine if it is one or the other.

Please see your doctor if you or your child has a sore throat with a fever, a rash, swollen glands or white patches on the tonsils. A quick throat test shows whether it is strep. Strep throat is treated with antibiotics, which also protect against rare but serious complications such as rheumatic fever, and a rough rash can be a sign of scarlet fever. Get urgent medical help if someone cannot swallow, has difficulty breathing, speaking or opening their mouth, or has a severe sore throat that quickly gets worse. For a child, get help the same day if they are getting worse, not improving, or drinking much less than usual. I use the remedies below alongside that care, not in place of it. (Sources: NHS and CDC, checked September 2026.)

These are the remedies I use in my practice for tonsillitis and sore throats that can be used alongside the care your doctor gives.

HOMEOPATHIC REMEDIES FOR STREP THROAT AND ACUTE TONSILLITIS

BELLADONNA 200

This is the first remedy I think of in acute tonsillitis or a sore throat, at the very beginning.

It may develop with a high-grade fever, and you may be very hot to touch, but at the same time, your body may feel cold. To learn more about my favourite remedies for fever have a look at this blog.

The face looks flushed, and you may have glassy eyes.

The pain feels like scraping in the throat, and the throat feels hot and dry. 

In my practice I give this every 2-3 hours at first. If things are getting worse and you are not responding to the remedies or not improving, see your doctor.

 HEPAR SULPH 200

 A remedy is a more established remedy for tonsillitis.

There is a sensation of a plug and a splinter in the throat and much hawking up of mucus. The pain is stitching and extends to the ear when swallowing.

The pain makes you very irritable and became hypersensitive to the pain. You may feel quite chilly.

This remedy follows Belladonna well. In fact, Hepar sulph 200 in alternation with Belladonna 30 every 2 hours is one of the best options for acute tonsillitis.

​Here you are combining two remedies that homeopaths often pair for an inflamed, infected throat.

BANERJI PROTOCOL TIP

The Banerjies use

• Hepar Sulph 200 every 3 hours or twice daily

or

• Mercurius Cyanatus 200+Belladonna3c every 3 hours.

The second protocol is best for pus-infected tonsils.

MERCURIUS SOL 200c: this remedy in homeopathy is helpful in an advanced stage of tonsillitis and strep throat and may well follow Hepar-sulph.

You may complain of a sweet metallic taste in the mouth, and there is an excess of saliva with a constant desire to swallow and bad breath. Stitches in the ear when swallowing.

The pain is sore, raw and smarting, and there may be a loss of voice. You may feel a burning pain in the throat as from a hot vapour ascending.

The tonsils may be covered with white patches indicating pus formation, and the tongue is usually coated in white. 

You may have night sweats and swollen lymph nodes on the neck.

LYCOPODIUM 30c: the person needing this remedy has stitching pain in the throat on swallowing, but it is better by having warm drinks.

Swelling and suppuration of the tonsils and ulceration may be present. The pain usually starts on the right side or may be worst on the right side. Your symptoms may feel worse between 4-8 pm.

LACHESIS 30c: the pain usually starts on the left side and may spread to the right side. 

The pain is worst on swallowing saliva and liquids, especially warm drinks, and by the sightless pressure, even by touch. The pains are eased by swallowing food.

The person cannot bear anything around the neck, and the pain can extend to the ear.

​There is the feeling that something is swollen and must be swallowed. The tonsils may look purplish.