Re: Is there any advantage to adding colostrum to a human diet?

Colostrum is the first liquid produced by the mammary gland after a 
pregnancy is completed (in other words, right after the baby is born).  
The composition of colostrum is known to differ from that of breast milk, 
in terms of the abundance of certain proteins.  All mammals can make 
colostrum, as far as I know.  In humans I believe colostrum is made for 
the first 24-48 hours after birth, after which time the composition 
changes to be that of standard breast milk.

I have done some web searching on colostrum as a nutritional supplement, 
and indeed I have found numerous web sites which sell bovine (cow) 
colostrum.  I cannot attest to the accuracy of the statements made by 
these companies, although they suggest that it can be beneficial.

I have also done searching of the peer reviewed scientific literature 
(PUBMED), through the web site  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?CMD=Search&DB=PubMed

This site is run by the National Institutes of Health.  I searched for 
articles about scientific studies of colostrum as a nutritional supplement 
for improving immune status, etc.  Numerous studies ask whether colostrum 
is beneficial to a newborn baby (for example, the influence on rabbit pup 
survival in rabbits that either do or do not get rabbit colostrum after 
birth from their mother).  I could not find any study which tested the 
benfit of bovine colostrum as a supplement in human health.

My personal opinion, which is in no way connected to the Mad Scientist 
Network or any other organization or institution, is that bovine colostrum 
as processed and sold by nutraceutical companies would be of no benefit to 
human health.  No doubt, the colostrum is likely a source of high protein 
which could be broken down in the human GI tract and used as a nutrient.  
This, however, is no different than drinking or eating other high protein 
foods like milk or meat.

Sorry I can't be of more help.