Phlegm in abundance for nearly two years. Is there any known condition that causes this much phlegm over a long period without diagnosis?

[whe2]

Mucus in abundance: I cough up or simply clear my throat dozens of times a day bringing up a tablespoon of mucus each time. I can fill a 12 ounce water bottle with the slimy stinky stuff each day. I currently am eating well but loosing weight from 150 down to 143 over a couple of months. I had gained weight back from 140 lbs in early 2020 to 150 plus. But I am now losing it again. I am quite actively training (Super Slow once a week and Steady for Life twice a week with trainers plus a lot of walking, cutting grass, and average another 2000 to 3000 Km three days a week.

My social life is next to none because of the phlegm I must clear every day.

I have had CT of my lungs recently and some mucus was detected in my lungs. My pomologist has prescribed a nebulizer treatment but my insurance will not honor it with out a COPD diagnosis. I have had extensive swallowing tests and one botox treatment (Endoscopy by my GE) . Sinuses have been X-rayed but no CT scan. Sin None of the drugs I have listed seem to help. I am trying to eliminate Gluten from my diet, but even my oatmeal results in more phlegm. ! It has been several years since I tested negative for Gluten allergy. I have an another appointment with my ENT and may be tested again. For the record, I am on Forteo - nearly 2 years - for my osteoporosis. This treatment started in Sept of 2019 shoutly before my excessive Phlegm experience. Except for the timing there is no reason to thing they are related.

Is there any known condition that causes this much phlegm over such a long period without any disease diagnosis?

[KidR]

Hi. Could it possibly be an allergy? It sounds like a lot of phlegm so maybe not. My father used to suffer from what he used to call cathaar (wrong spelling I’m sure) and from time to time I’m the same. I had a few bouts last year and woke up during the night feeling as if I was drowning in phlegm.

I have a few plants in my bedroom and wondered if it could be the cause. One was flowering at the time. Once the flowers died my problem stopped.

Just a thought. It would be lovely if your issue could be solved so simply. Do you have a new pet by any chance ?

I hope you get some answers soon. Take care.

[Hidden]

Usual suspect is normally dairy, if it's food related. Do you have a lot of dairy products in your diet? Other than that, I have no direct experience of knowledge in this. Are you smoker and/or have you been exposed to any industrial pollutants in your job?

[TaraJR]

Dairy is well known to cause or aggravate it. And also being hypothyroid. Have you had FULL thyroid tests done?

[Sybilla14]

I used to have a lot of phlegm in the back of my throat all the time but it all cleared up when I removed dairy. I can eat hard cheese and butter but not anything else. Whenever I had something with the finest amount of milk in it came back so I no longer eat anything with milk even occasionally as it’s not worth it.

[suzie44na]

Hi, My uncle had this for years without a diagnosis, then he saw a specialist who said it was to do with mould, possibly in his home, so make sure you have no mould in your home anywhere. Just a thought.Suzie

[MTCee]

Before I went gluten free I used to get a lot of catarrh which made me prone to chest infections. I’ve been gluten free for 8 years and it’s no longer a problem. Maybe it’s a sign of some general inflammation in your lungs? You would probably benefit from an elimination diet ......cutting one thing out at a time. I’d start with dairy since it’s harder to cut out gluten, but I’d consider gluten as well after dairy.

[Leils]

Are you on a dairy free diet?

[DartmoorGuerrilla]

I used to have the same, supposedly linked to severe asthma. Changed specialists, new one decided to treat me as an allergy patient instead of asthma patient. Removed lactose from diet (or I take lactase enzyme tablets when I fancy a bit of “real” cheese) and voila, no more asthma and no mucus (except for when I lapse… always cheese related).

[Waterlily]

Just a thought when you mention weight loss and osteoporosis as well. How are your teeth? Or your bathroom habits? Are they also affected? It may be worth asking your doc to do a fecal elastase stool test to see if your pancreas is working as it shd. Look up the condition Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency to see if any of the other symptoms compare to your health experience.