Colostrum for Adults: 5 Key Health Benefits

Author's Bio: Marcie Vaske, MS, LN, CNS

Today we're diving into a topic that you might think that it's only for newborns, colostrum. But adults are using a lot more. And I'm sure that if you've seen any kind of social media, you are seeing marketing for colostrum. So today I'll dig into the five science back benefits of using Colostrum.

But first, my name is Marcie Vaske, and I'm a licensed nutritionist with Flusso Nutrients. And at Flusso Nutrients, we work really hard to educate you on different types of supplements so that you can make good choices and educated choices for yourself. It's always wise to speak to a supplement literate practitioner, just to be sure that you're not contraindicating any of the medications you may be taking or even other supplements.

So without further ado, let's dig back into colostrum for adults.

[Video Transcript Below + Supplement Links Discussed In Video]

What Is Colostrum?

Colostrum is the first form of milk that's produced by mammals, of course, including humans and even cows. This is produced right after giving birth, and it's really this thick, golden type of milk that's loaded with antibodies, growth factors, and nutrients. So any of us that were breastfed at birth for sure got this colostrum. And today we see colostrum as a supplement. It's marketed all the time, and mostly it is made up of bovine colostrum. It's actually taken from grass fed cows 24 hours after birth, and then processed into a powder or even into a capsule. So colostrum is not just milk, it is really a powerhouse of nutrients and a major immune supporter.

So now we know what colostrum is, where it comes from. So let's talk about the benefits of colostrum.

5 Science-Backed Benefits of Colostrum for Adults

Colostrum Supports Gut Health

Number one, you hear about it all the time, but colostrum supports our gut health.

So why is it such a major benefit to our gut health? Well, colostrum is really filled with lactoferrin immunoglobulins and growth factors. So if you're struggling with IBS, IBD, any kind of gut health inflammatory situation, you can benefit greatly from colostrum.

Colostrum Strengthens the Immune System

Number two, colostrum is a really amazing immune supporter. One of Colostrum's most famous pieces of it is that it's filled with antibodies, particularly our IgG. And those antibodies help our immune system to identify and really eliminate harmful pathogens. Studies have even shown that by taking colostrum regularly, it can reduce GI infections and even upper respiratory infections for people who are more prone to them.

Colostrum Improves Athletic Performance

Number three, colostrum has been seen to be very beneficial for athletic performance, and this is due in part because colostrum has a tendency to improve muscle recovery, reduce inflammation, and even create better endurance. Now, it does this because it is filled with growth factors. These growth factors help to repair our muscles and even helps to maintain a healthier gut barrier, both of which are really important for athletes who do intense training.

Colostrum Promotes Skin and Wound Healing

Number four, benefit of colostrum is going to be skin or wound healing. So colostrum doesn't just heal or repair tissue in the intestinal tract, but it can also heal and repair skin wounds by reducing inflammation. So there have been people who even have used colostrum topically. So if you've gotten cut or you're healing from a wound or surgery or procedure, putting colostrum kind of like a paste on your wound can help to repair the tissue more quickly. We're even seeing colostrum in beauty products for this anti-aging effects.

Colostrum Provides Anti-Aging Support

And that leads us into benefit number five, which is anti-aging support. Colostrum helps to reduce aging because it contains bioactive compounds which help to reduce the oxidative stress in our body, and by supporting healthy hormone balance and of course muscle recovery and tissue, these are all important factors for aging. Well, some researchers are even saying that colostrum could help maintain lean body tissue for longer, which of course we know is going to help in the aging process.

So those are the five benefits of colostrum. And when you hear all of those things, you think, oh, I should just jump right on the train and start taking colostrum. And it is, as I said, super beneficial in many different ways. And I feel that if you want to give it a shot, absolutely do so.

Who Should Be Cautious with Colostrum?

I think the only negative when it comes to colostrum is that people who are dairy-free might have a reaction to the bovine colostrum, and that's not saying everybody. So it's kind of, you can test it out or you can get a version of colostrum. So if you are dairy free, you'll just want to make sure that's what you're looking for, especially if you're very, very sensitive to dairy.

How to Take Colostrum Supplements

Now, of course, the amount of colostrum that you'll take per day, typically I recommend taking it in powdered form. It's more bioavailable and you can get more at one time. Typically, a scoop is about five grams, and most people will take just one scoop a day. You can mix it in water, you can put it in a smoothie any way that you want to, and just to kind of watch the benefits of colostrum.

Now, of course, like any supplement, you want to make sure that the manufacturer is top of the tier so that you're getting that grass fed colostrum product. And also, if you're going to start any kind of supplement, want to take it for at least three months to see what kind of benefits can happen. Sometimes they don't show up for a few weeks, and so don't give up hope. But the benefits are amazing, and for most people, they do see some changes in one of those five categories that we talked about today.

So I hope this helped give you a little bit more insight into colostrum, what the major benefits of it are for each of us, and that if you have any of those things, you're working on gut health, you are doing intense exercising, you have skin healing to do any of those things where you want extra support, colostrum can be a fantastic supplement to try.

Thanks for watching.

Check out the high-quality supplements we discussed in this video - links below for your convenience!

1) IgG Protect Powder by Ortho Molecular Products: create an account here, then search the name "IgG Protect Powder by Ortho Molecular Products" - https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/flussonutrients

2) ALL PROFESSIONAL QUALITY SUPPLEMENTS: https://flussonutrients.nutridyn.com & https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/flussonutrients