This is probably simplistic but my son has this. He’s always trying to clear his throat and it is annoying fit him and those around him.

He discovered when he eliminates dairy from his diet, the phlegmy throat feeling goes away and he no longer feels like he has to constantly clear his throat.

I have Sjögren’s syndrome which is an auto-immune disorder. Many systemic manifestations but most of us have dryness of all mucus membranes, notably sinus, throat, eyes, etc. another fellow Sjögren’s”patient mentioned this symptom on the Smart Patients website. Because of less saliva production and dryness overall, our throats often have thick secretions.

One of their doctors said that throat clearing can become a habit, and that instead of trying to clear your throat, you should take a sip of water each time you want to clear, and be more conscious of not clearing every time you feel the urge.

This is probably elementary and not helpful, but I just thought the dairy elimination might help!

I hope you can get some relief!