What is Colostrum and Its Benefits

What Is Bovine Colostrum?

Colostrum is the pre-milk fluid produced from the mother’s mammary glands during the first few hours after birth (0-6 hours for Bovine (Cow) Mothers). It provides over 700 life-supporting immune, essential and growth factors that insure the health and vitality of the newborn. In cows the antibodies provide passive immunity to the newborn calf.

Bovine colostrum is the first milk product produced by cows in the first 6 hours following a calf’s birth. 

Pure Bovine Colostrum

Colostrum is a pre-milk fluid that mammals secrete.  Bovine colostrum is like human colostrum and therefore suitable for adults.

Before getting into the benefits of colostrum is it necessary to lay some concerns to rest.  One concern has to do with the newborn calf and is this.

How Much Colostrum Does a Newborn Calf Need?

Along with that question, is the question of whether calves are harmed by colostrum harvesting.   The answer is No.  Calves get at least 2 quarts of colostrum.  After their needs are satisfied, the remaining 4-8 quarts is taken.

What About Raw Bovine Colostrum?

When colostrum is processed, it is pooled from hundreds and thousands of cows.  Raw colostrum from a local farmer comes from one parent cow.  The pooling process is better as it provides broad based immune factors as the multiple cows each individually added their own immune factors to the batch, so together, there is a broader-based product.

How Old is the Best Bovine Colostrum?

The best bovine colostrum with the most immunoglobulins is harvested within the first six hours of the birth of the calf.  After that, colostrum transitions into milk and is less likely to have adequate immunoglobulins.

True colostrum is a pre-milk fluid; it is not milk.  It has almost no lactose.  This is of interest to those who are lactose intolerant.  However, they should always speak to their physician concerning colostrum.

When it is collected in the first 0-6 hours after birth, it contains the highest concentration of immune and growth factors.

Why Do I Need Colostrum As An Adult?

Since colostrum is nature’s food for infants, to boost the infants’ immune systems and to give them growth factors, why do adults need it? 

As people age, their bodies produce less of the growth and immune factors the body needs.  This is why older people are more susceptible to disease and why they experience other effects of aging.  Collostrum bovine collostrum, has the immune and anti-aging factors in the perfect combination to benefit adults.

Colostrum, taken on a regular basis as a food, can simply be a healthy lifestyle choice.  It can help bring the body back to homeostasis or healthy balance.

Colostrum aids the body in building lean muscle mass and rejuvenation of organs and skins.  It has a wide spectrum of biologically active substances that the body can use as needed.  It supports a healthy immune system.

Colostrum is a food.  Colostrum from a cow is up to 100 or 1000 times more potent than human colostrum for babies. 

Best Bovine Colostrum Supplement

Cornell University researchers confirmed scientifically that true colostrum must come within the first six hours of the birth of the calf.  After six hours, the lactose content rises and the fat content changes.  Growth and immune factors are lost. 

Some colostrum powders are taken up as long as 72 hours after the birth of the calf.  This is not true colostrum.  This is transitional milk.

So far, there is no label requirement regarding when the milk was taken.  You can go to the manufacturer and ask if they have a certification of the authenticity of the colostrum supplement being true six-hour colostrum.

Ask the manufacturer if the colostrum was taken in six hours or less.

Also, it is important that it has not been defatted.  The fat stores immune and growth factors.

Benefits of Bovine Colostrum for Humans

To experience the benefits of bovine colostrum, consumers need to make sure it is 100% colostrum.  Some colostrum is transitional milk or colostrum mixed with whey.

To experience the true benefits, it is important to start with true, first milk, 6 hour colostrum.

How to Use Bovine Colostrum Supplement in Food

To experience the benefits of this bovine colostrum supplement, make sure it is true colostrum.  To incorporate it on a daily basis is easy to do as it may be mixed in yogurt, cottage cheese,  applesauce or oatmeal.  It can be added to liquid drinks such as a smoothie.  It is food. 

Benefits of Bovine Colostrum in General

Colostrum is an anti-aging compound.  It can be taken for increased energy.  The all-natural growth factors stimulate the production of normal body cells.  It is a powerful anti-aging compound.

Bovine Colostrum Benefits for Adults and Athletes

Bovine colostrum contains testosterone building peptides and growth factors.  This aids in building and repairing muscle tissue.  It also aids in keeping T cell levels high.

For athletes, to increase fitness and performance, add 10-20 grams of Colostrum powder to a protein drink or juice and drink 30 – 45 minutes before working out.

Colostrum can also  be used to fight upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) in athletes.  Read more here in the article Athletic Superfood.

Bovine Colostrum Nutrition Facts

BC is rich in bioactive components including growth factors, immunoglobulins, and antimicrobial peptides (lactoferrin) that are bio-identical to human colostrum. 

Is Bovine Colostrum Good for You?

Yes.  It contains immunoglobins which aid the thymus.  The thymus helps develop T cells which are part of the immune process.

Colostrum contains immune factors and growth factors.  It helps with both processes.  In addition, one of the problems of modern life is what is known as leaky gut of leaky gut syndrome.  Colostrum is beneficial for leaky gut repair and digestive track regeneration (see more information below).

Is Bovine Colostrum Safe?

True six hour Colostrum itself is safe.

 It is important to realize that some colostrum that is sold as colostrum is actually instead transitional milk or has whey mixed into it.  Therefore, a lactose intolerant individual must consider the actual composition of the colostrum carefully with the advice of their physician. 

If a person is lactose intolerant, it is important to determine if the product is actual, true, 6-hour colostrum, which is a pre-milk, pre-lactose product, or whether it is transitional milk or has been mixed with whey.

Even with that, if a person is lactose intolerant, they should talk to their physician before taking pure colostrum.  It may be possible to take a lactose digestive enzyme but talk to your physician for sure.  An abundance of caution with lactose intolerant individuals is never a bad idea.

Bovine colostrum for Leaky Gut

It has been found that regular usage of bovine colostrum products helps keep the gut lining healthy.

Read more, click here.

Therefore, it makes sense to take it as a staple dietary food, particularly since it is so easy to incorporate as part of healthy lifestyle.  As mentioned above, it can be mixed into yogurt, applesauce, smoothies, oatmeal and baked products. 

Some health products are difficult to incorporate into a healthy lifestyle.  Bovine colostrum is easy to incorporate because it is an actual food.

Best Bovine Colostrum for Dogs and Colostrum for Cats

Colostrum is a mammal’s first fluid for the young.  Dogs and cats are mammals so colostrum also benefits them as well.  For every 10-pounds, one gram of colostrum is used.  It is sprinkled on the food.

Where to Buy Bovine Colostrum for Dogs and Colostrum for Cats?

It can be purchased the same place as it is purchased for the pet owner as it is not a special form of colostrum, but simply colostrum given to the pet at a rate of one gram per 10 pounds. 

Where is Bovine Colostrum for Sale?

Bovine colostrum can be obtained online.  It is possible to purchase bovine colostrum wholesale as a wholesale customer.  So to answer the question, “Is bovine colostrum near me?”  Yes, it is as near as your nearest mouse click.   

This post first appeared in TryTrueColostrum.com