Scroll through social media, and it won’t be long before you stumble on bovine colostrum supplements—the latest nutrition trend that’s making big claims and leaving us with even bigger questions.
Made from the milk-like substance secreted in late pregnancy and the first few days of breastfeeding, the liquid—normally reserved for infants and other baby mammals like calves—is now being touted as almost a magic bullet for adults. Companies claim a wide range of health benefits, from improving your skin to regulating digestion, and some even say it boosts your immunity and speeds up post-workout recovery. Sounds great, sure, but does the research follow in line? We asked nutrition and lactation experts to break it down.
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What exactly is bovine colostrum, and why are people so into it now?
If you’re stuck on the fact that colostrum is a precursor to breast milk, let’s clear something up: The stuff you see at the store comes from cows, not humans. Mammals of all kinds produce colostrum to meet the nutrient and developmental demands of their offspring, Jennifer T. Smilowitz, PhD, lactation education counselor and assistant professor in the department of nutrition at University California, Davis, tells SELF. In most cases, it’s sold dried and in capsule form rather than as a liquid.
Colostrum is thicker and more concentrated than the milk that comes later. It’s especially rich in nutrients that reduce infection risks and gut inflammation in newborns, like prebiotics, as well as enzymes and proteins with antibacterial and antiviral properties, like lysozyme and lactoferrin, says Dr. Smilowitz. This is important, because at birth, an infant’s gut (both human and bovine) is slightly permeable, which can increase their risk of infection and inflammation. “So colostrum fed in the first few days of life helps fortify the gut,” she says.
More specifically, bovine colostrum also contains the same helpful nutrients in cows milk and more, says Harbstreet. That includes fat-soluble vitamins A, D, and E, plus important minerals like calcium, iron, zinc, and magnesium. Some, like IGF-1, which helps bones and tissue develop normally, exist in higher concentrations in the colostrum.
The fact that it’s great for gut health (albeit for infants) is a large part of the reason why it’s become such a wellness darling, Cara Harbstreet, MS, RD, of Street Smart Nutrition, tells SELF. Scroll through social or stroll through a pharmacy aisle, and you can see that the focus on better digestion and regularity has never been stronger. Couple that with other claims like improving your workouts and your immune system—two other big ticket topics on a lot of folks’ minds right now—and it’s not hard to see why interest in the supplement is spiking.
Which brings us to: Do bovine colostrum supplements actually deliver?
There are actually two important questions here: One, do the bovine colostrum supplements on the market have all the beneficial factors as actual bovine colostrum? And two, do the benefits of colostrum extend past its intended audience (i.e., literal infants)?
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For one, it’s tricky to say for sure whether all of the nutrients in actual bovine colostrum show up in the same way in bovine colostrum supplements, which is how you’d buy it on the market, says Dr. Smilowitz.
It all depends on how it’s processed. Any method that uses heat (like pasteurization or spray drying) can fundamentally change the proteins within and reduce the potential immune-boosting, gut-healing, muscle-repairing benefits they may provide, she explains. Freeze-drying better preserves the beneficial nutrients, but most supplements use one of the two heat-based options because they’re less expensive and time-consuming—which means that there’s a chance the colostrum products you see won’t have the same makeup as the actual stuff.
And because supplements in general are not regulated the same way as food and medications and don’t fall under the oversight of the FDA, there’s no way to know for sure what you’re getting in each capsule or container, Harbstreet says.
That brings us to the next point: What does the science say about colostrum?
First, there’s no understating the value of human colostrum to newborns, says Dr. Smilowitz, since it delivers both vital nutrients and protective molecules that “support development during a very vulnerable period.” As for the bovine stuff, while there’s not a ton of research, what we have does seem to show that bovine colostrum can provide similar benefits, which can be a boon to those seeking alternatives or supplements to breastfeeding because of preference or necessity.
But adults aren’t just big babies, so it’s not as clear whether it affects us in the same way. And adults are turning to bovine colostrum for a whole bunch of other reasons aside from its biological purpose, including clearing up their skin, boosting digestion, and improving exercise.
And according to Dr. Smilowitz, the data for these claims is mixed at best.
Take workouts. When exercisers took bovine colostrum supplements, they experienced only a slight (and, as the researchers noted, nonsignificant) increase in insulin-like growth factor hormones—which help with post-workout muscle repair and recovery—after one day, but no change in levels after four and 12 weeks, as a 2019 study in the European Journal of Nutrition showed. And a small 2023 study in Nutrients on 28 soccer players found a decrease in inflammatory markers after exercise with bovine colostrum supplementation, but no increase in athletic performance of any kind. Overall, when taking it for performance or recovery, “the evidence base…remains minimal at present,” as a comprehensive review looking at its effects on exercise and sport concluded.
Its benefits on skin health are even less supported. Pretty much the only study we have—which found that colostrum may have promising protective qualities—was performed on isolated human skin cells rather than actual people. So until more rigorous research (that’s actually tested on people) is available, there’s no hard proof that taking colostrum supplements will do anything for your skin.
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As for gut health, while there’s a greater heft of research available, even those findings are inconclusive, says Dr. Smilowitz. Take a 2024 review in Systematic Reviews, which looked at the effect of supplementation on GI issues. Across 20 studies, 15 found bovine colostrum decreased the frequency of diarrhea, though most saw no change in how long it lasted for—and of the 22 overall, none showed a benefit for other issues like constipation. The same mixed bag exists for immune health. While a review of 28 clinical studies concluded that supplementation seemed to promote immune system response, the authors also flagged that because of all the differences in their methodologies and sample sizes, analyzing them all together wasn’t possible. “Further well-designed studies are needed” to support its use, they concluded.
That common theme is one of the biggest problems with bovine colostrum research: Overall, the studies tend to be…not great. “Most studies at this point are very small, usually less than 100 people,” Harbstreet says. And some, like research on bovine colostrum and exercise, flat-out state that they didn’t do a great job teasing out possible confounding factors that could mess with results. “It’s too soon to make sweeping claims about the supposed benefits of colostrum at this point,” Harbstreet says.
So should you be taking bovine colostrum?
The short answer is no, say both Dr. Smilowitz and Harbstreet—at least not until we have better, more conclusive research.
The best thing to do? Ask yourself why you’re interested in taking a colostrum supplement in the first place. For example, maybe you want to recover better after exercise or soothe your GI system. If that’s the case, see if there’s another (proven) way to improve the issue. (Spoiler: There are tons that are more evidence-backed than colostrum.) Maybe you need to eat more protein and take an extra rest day, or eat a little more fiber to help you poop more easily. And as always, if you have something about your body you’re worried about, looping in a pro is never a bad idea and is always going to offer the more individualized approach that a random supplement can’t.
“As much as you might crave a quick fix, you could be better off investing in other aspects of your routine to reap bigger rewards for your short- and long-term health,” Harbstreet says.
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