how do you know if it is ''mucus''? i think sometimes actual food just hangs around partially stuck and has to be cleared out of the way

My problem with excessive phlegm began about 2 years ago. I used to have to clear my throat about 20 mins after eating. But it has worsened in the past 3 months to the point where, five minutes into my meal, I cannot swallow my food without leaving the table & clearing the thick phlegm! And the aftermath can be as long as 20 minutes of coughing up phlegm! (I was tested for food allergies & none were detected!) I recently learned that phlegm is a big deal in Chinese mediciine. So I found a Chinese herbal "doctor" in Chinatown who examine my tongue & throat & swallowing & gave me 5 days' worth of 10 different herbs to boil up & take 2x/day. I JUST BEGAN taking it today. It's worth a try to check it out. There's a lot on the web re: Chinese medicine & phlegm, but only my Chinese acupuncturist HIGHLY recommended herbal treatment. She said herbs work a lot faster! So here's hoping it works. I have run out of other Western medical alternatives. And they just want to throw medicine at it, & not get to the root of the problem. In addition, you have to eat the right food & avoid the wrong kind (ie: dairy, which produces phlegm, & others, which you will read about on the web). I hope this is helpful!

I have had this problem worsen withing the last two years and I am 36yrs of age, I have notice two things that actually relieve the symtomps but are by no means a cure. Shortly after eating I feel the phlegm rising to my throat but if I constantly move around, walking, carrying, lifting which are all things I have to do for hours (10hrs a day to be exact) in my line of work, the phlegm goes away in about an hour or two on its own. If I am home or at a social gathering the only thing that stops the clearing of the throat and the stomach bloating is an asthma pump. I have also gone to specialist and they have yet to determine the root of the problem. I will be having a cat scan of my stomach by the end of this month to see if something shows up to explain what might be triggering it. Other common issues and results stemming from this problem for me have been; bloating of the stomach, trouble breathing, and weight loss.

I am an X-ray tech and while I do not have any intent on diagnosing anyone's problems here, I highly reccommend seeing your pcp and see if you should get a barium swallow done. A speech pathologist and a radiologist perform a test under fluoroscopy (a radiology exam). This will visually assess your swallowing mechanism. Sometimes small pouches develop and catch minute particles of food. There are many reasons food doesn't go down. And then there are reflux disorders but that's a slightly different exam.

I know exactly what it is. I have a slight gluten intolerance. Not enough to test positive but anytime i eat bread or anything with gluten in it. I spend like 30 mins clearing "goo" from my throat. Its embarassing. I hear other people do it all the time and i bring it to their attention and they didnt even realize they were doing it. Lol sucks.