 Dr.
Rosenbaum on Colostrum
Colostrum is Nature’s gift to newborn
babies. Colostrum is a precious maternal secretion that is made for only the
first few days of an infant’s life to protect the vulnerable newcomer
against a hoard of opportunistic microbes and activate its immune system.
Colostrum is not milk. It contains none of the major milk proteins or lactose
and should not produce a milk allergy when ingested. Pure colostrum, unmixed
with any milk, is secreted for only the first day after the mother gives birth.
For that reason, colostrum used for nutritional supplementation is best
collected during the first twelve to twenty-four hours after birth.
- Colostrum is critical for the health of a newborn. What
it does for the newborn, it can do for you:
Jump start the immune
response.
- Neutralize invading microbes with an impressive immune
arsenal of antibodies, (immunoglobulins) lactoferrin, and transfer factor.
- Colostrum contains antiadhesive properties that block the
ability of bacteria and parasites to stick to the intestinal wall so they slip
and slide their way out of your body.
- Promote the growth and healing of skin, bones, muscles,
and cartilage. Colostrum is perhaps the only known food supplement that
contains IgF-1 (Insulin Growth Factor -1) the anabolic wonder substance that
the liver makes in response to growth hormone. IgF-1 produces many of the
exciting antiaging effects of growth hormone including more lean body mass,
thicker skin with fewer wrinkles, more energy and an overall improved sense of
well-being. In addition, colostrum contains growth factors which rapidly
promote healing throughout the body.
- Reduce pain and inflammation. Colostrum contains small
fragments of proteins called peptides that convey immune messages to immune
cells and the brain. These infopeptides modulate the immune response to
maintain a healthy equilibrium. One immune messenger, interleukin-10 or IL-10,
specifically reduces inflammation. Colostrum may help the body to control
allergies and when used as a topical paste, can speed the healing of burns and
wounds.
- Normalize blood sugar. IgF-1 is very similar in structure
to insulin. It may help to expunge the main culprits thought to be responsible
for heart disease, obesity and adult-onset diabetes – elevated blood sugar
and high blood insulin – the telltale signs of insulin resistance.
- Enhance mental alertness and overall sense of well-being.
There is evidence that colostrum has the ability to modify levels of the brain
transmitters which affect mental alertness and mood.
Colostrum has been used with success to combat common
bacterial infections of the nose, sinuses, and urinary tract. It can mitigate
the threat of food poisoning caused by salmonella, commonly found in chicken
and eggs, and listeria found in soft cheeses. Saavy international travelers say
colostrum is effective against “turista” and other endemic infectious
diseases.
Preliminary data indicate colostrum is effective against
Cryptosporidium– a parasite that resides in the digestive tract and is not
uncommon in urban water supplies. This microscopic parasite can cause
unremitting diarrhea that can last for months and is resistant to antibiotics.
Cryptosporidium can be a doctor’s and patient’s nightmare –
especially if the patient has a disease such as cancer or AIDS that compromises
the immune response.
There is no conventional medical treatment for
viral illnesses because antibiotics do not destroy viruses. The only treatment
a physician can recommend for a common viral illness is rest, fluids, and
patience. Preliminary studies indicate that colostrum may be the answer to
reducing the impact of viral illnesses. Diarrhea in children caused by the
common rotavirus has responded favorably and even the life-threatening virus
that causes hepatitis C has been reported to respond to treatment with
colostrum.
The introduction of antibiotics has resulted in widespread
complacency towards infectious diseases. For decades we have believed that we
no longer have to fear armies of microscopic invaders. The last decade has
given health professionals a rude wake up call. In the early 1990s scientists
were dismayed to discover that bacteria have the ability to mutate rapidly into
drug-resistant strains. Today, physicians are seeing a resurgence of infectious
diseases we thought were long gone – tuberculosis, gruesome strep
infections which literally dissolve the body, drug-resistant pneumonia and
E-coli, salmonella – and our arsenal of drugs is severely depleted. To add
to the nightmare, researchers have discovered that what were thought to be
one-time infections can actually cause chronic degenerative diseases such as
heart disease, arthritis, and Alzheimer’s. Hopefully, natural healing
substances like colostrum, will give us the upper hand.
Michael E. Rosenbaum, M.D., who practices in Corte
Madera, California, is Springboard’s Chief Medical Advisor.
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