- With Mayo Clinic internist
James M. Steckelberg, M.D.
read biographyclose windowBiography of
James M. Steckelberg, M.D.
James Steckelberg, M.D.
Dr. James Steckelberg is chairman of the Division of Infectious Diseases at Mayo Clinic, a consultant and a professor of medicine at Mayo Medical School.
A native of Fremont, Neb., Dr. Steckelberg was a Rhodes Scholar and graduated from the Mayo Graduate School of Medicine as a resident in internal medicine and a fellow in infectious diseases, and is board certified in both. He is the former director of the Infectious Diseases Research Laboratory at Mayo Clinic.
Dr. Steckelberg belongs to numerous professional organizations. He is a founding member of the Musculoskeletal Infection Society of America and a fellow with the American College of Physicians and the Infectious Diseases Society of America. He has served on many Mayo Clinic committees and is a member of the Department of Medicine Leadership Committee and the executive committee of the Division of Infectious Diseases. He also served on the editorial boards of "Mayo Clinic Proceedings" and "Antimicrobial Agents & Chemotherapy" and has been an editorial reviewer for more than a dozen publications.
Dr. Steckelberg's research interests include experimental models of infection, epidemiology of infection, and antimicrobial resistance and therapy of bacterial infections.
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Question
Cold symptoms: Does drinking milk increase phlegm?
I've heard that you shouldn't drink milk when you have a cold because it increases phlegm. Is this true?
Answer
from James M. Steckelberg, M.D.
Phlegm is the thick, sticky mucus that drips down the back of your throat when you have a cold. Although drinking milk may make phlegm thicker and more irritating to your throat than it would normally be, milk doesn't cause your body to make more phlegm. In fact, frozen dairy products can soothe a sore throat and provide calories when you otherwise may not eat.
Next questionExercise and illness: Should you exercise when you're sick?
- Pinnock CB, et al. Relationship between milk intake and mucus production in adult volunteers challenged with rhinovirus-2. The American Review of Respiratory Disease. 1990;141(2):352-356.
- Wuthrich B, et al. Milk consumption does not lead to mucus production or occurrence of asthma. Journal of the American College of Nutrition. 2005;24(90006)(suppl):547-555.
