Bovine Colostrum

Common Name(s): BCC (bovine colostrum concentrate), Bovine colostrum, Cow milk colostrum, Early milk, Hyperimmune milk, Immune milk, Lactobin, Lactoferrin, LC2N

Medically reviewed by Drugs.com. Last updated on Apr 21, 2022.

Clinical Overview

Use

Bovine colostrum may have a role in the management of HIV-associated diarrhea. There is increasing evidence of efficacy in boosting the immune system, preventing upper respiratory tract infection, reducing GI permeability, and enhancing athletic performance, although data are conflicting and are based on small sample sizes and studies of limited quality.

Dosing

Standardization of commercial bovine colostrum products is difficult because antibody content varies widely. Dosages up to 60 g/day for up to 12 weeks have been used in clinical trials evaluating use for athletic enhancement. In trials using bovine colostrum for exercise-induced GI permeability, dosages of 20 g/day for 14 days, or 1 g/day for 20 days have been used; in one trial, a dosage of 1.7 g/kg/day for 7 days prior to an exercise protocol was used.

Contraindications

Contraindications other than milk allergy have not been identified.

Pregnancy/Lactation

Avoid use. Information regarding safety and efficacy in pregnancy and lactation is lacking.

Interactions

None well documented.

Adverse Reactions

Bovine colostrum is well tolerated, with minor GI complaints (eg, nausea, flatulence, diarrhea), unpleasant taste, and skin rash occurring infrequently.

Toxicology

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted the safety of hyperimmune milks on the basis that no adverse health effects have been shown in clinical studies. Past concerns regarding transmission of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), a feed-borne infection in cattle, have been resolved.

Source

Bovine colostrum is the premilk fluid produced from mammary glands of a cow during the first 2 to 4 days after giving birth. It is a rich natural source of nutrients, antibodies, immunoglobulins, antimicrobial peptides, and growth factors for the newborn calf. Bovine colostrum is collected from dairy cows shortly after calving.Hurley 2011, Rathe 2014

History

The use of colostrum for both medicinal and spiritual purposes has been documented in traditional Ayurvedic medicine and among the ancient Hindu rishis (spiritual leaders) of India. At the turn of the 20th century, the use of colostrum was advocated to protect infants against both human and bovine infections. Prior to the advent of sulfa drugs and other antibiotics, colostrum was used to boost defense against immune diseases. Albert Sabin isolated antipolio antibodies in bovine colostrum in the 1950s; the first experiments with hyperimmune colostrum were conducted in the 1960s. Human lactoferrin is now produced via recombinant techniques and has been studied in preterm infants and neonates for the prevention and treatment of necrotizing enterocolitis.Struff 2007

Chemistry

Colostrum contains immunoglobulins (immunoglobulin G [IgG], IgA, and IgM), polypeptides and glycoproteins, lactoferrin, cytokines (including interleukins, interferon-gamma, and tumor necrosis factor alpha), lactoperoxidase, lysozyme, growth factors (including insulinlike, vascular endothelial, platelet-derived, and fibroblast growth factors), caseins, bioactive oligosaccharides, vitamins, fats, and minerals. Additionally, microRNA that may have immune-regulating activity is present in microvesicles.

Concentrations of immunoglobulins, which are dependent on the animal species, decline sharply in the first few days postpartum. Unlike humans, bovine maternal...