Colostrum is an essential mechanism for growth in newborns. It is produced by the mother of any newborn mammal in the first few days after birth before she begins producing milk. Colostrum is nutrient dense and may provide many benefits; however, those benefits should be weighed heavily against some of the factors described in this article.
Colostrum Considerations
Many people believe that vitamins and nutrients can be taken equally among male and females with few exceptions. While many trace minerals and vitamins do provide health benefits to most people indiscriminately, there are cases where some supplements favor certain genders. In those cases, consumers should be aware of the side effects that supplements, such as Colostrum, may have on a person depending on their gender.
The following is a list of the top three benefits Colostrum can offer an individual; however, caution should be exercised before blindly ingesting this supplement as we later explain.
- Weight loss
- Lean muscle
- Hormone therapy
Weight Loss
As a dietary supplement, colostrum can lead to weight loss among men and women with some statistically significant consideration. Women should consider the hormone factor and lean muscle factor that colostrum can affect before expecting an immediate change in their weight.
Since colostrum comes from the female mammal after giving birth to a baby, it is very nutrient dense and therefore can be used to help reduce meal portions without starving the body of vital nutrients. Combined with a regular exercise regimen, the over-the-counter product has shown to decrease fat deposits around muscles patients repeatedly exercise in high repetitions and low to medium impact, such as jogging or calisthenics.
Obviously, such benefits lend themselves to females interested in toning their physique. Likewise, males will find fast turnaround on results from medium-level intensity workouts, such as sit ups and similar routines. Without an exercise regimen, colostrum may produce a variety of alternate and perhaps unwelcome results and careful consideration should be placed on the timing of ingestion of the supplement relative to the time of day in which a workout is performed.
Lean Muscle from Colostrum
As a result of the nutrient density of colostrum and combined with the high hormone content of the supplement, it can be used to increase lean muscle mass and reduce bulky muscles, which may be beneficial to women who are dissatisfied with the shape or contour of their appearance.
When taken daily along with a high-protein diet and combined with intensive aerobic workouts such as running, sit ups, pushups, and similar exercises, the muscle directly engaged will show an improved density immediately after the work out. However, the results are temporary and require that the supplement continue being taken and the routine be repeated continuously in order to maintain the desired results.
Conversely, performing an intense exercise regime over a period of time will have the same effects with or without supplements. The human body is programmed inherently by design to adapt to its environment in a manner that reduces the stress on the brain. Therefore, repeated exercise will increase muscle density and reduce fatigue so that a person can repeat that same exercise with less effort over time.
Hormone Therapy
The difference then between exercise with the dietary supplement colostrum as opposed to without or other vitamins or nutrients is that the muscles and of course the body itself are taking in the hormones intended for a newborn offspring. In the case of bovines, when the mother and calf are separated after birth, the mother undergoes tremendous stress and separation anxiety. This results in the colostrum being released from her body to contain elevated hormone levels that can lead to undesired side effects.
On the plus side, these hormones can act to enhance hormone levels in females, provided the colostrum was drawn from a mother bovine who just birthed a female calf.
Behind the scenes
In order to extract colostrum from a new bovine mother, the calf is often times prevented from nursing. This practice involves fitting the nose of the newborn with a sharp-edged nose ring that both prevents the calf from reaching the utter and causes pain to the mother should the calf be persistent. Purchasing and supporting the colostrum industry is also directly linked to the veal industry, since these newborns rarely are permitted to see adulthood.
Conclusion
In terms of a health supplement, males hoping to improve performance and stamina as well as increase lean body mass with colostrum should consider alternative therapies. Females may see benefits, but they should carefully consider if such benefits outweigh the moral cost associated with harvesting colostrum.