Why You Shouldn’t Give Up on Dairy Just Yet
There’s Actually Research That Shows Some Dairy Is Good For You
So, if you’ve been reading around the blogosphere lately, you might be led to believe dairy’s something you just shouldn’t have.
For the most part, that’s 100% correct.
I think that most kinds of dairy, especially pasteurized dairy from conventionally-raised cows, should definitely be excluded from your diet.
If you want to see the reasons behind that claim, check out this article I wrote on dairy by clicking this link: Dairy’s Bad, Here’s Why
There are more than a handful of reasons dairy deserves its bad reputation.
But, being the amazing champion of health that I am (I’m modest too), I’ve found one way to help you include dairy into your diet again.
Now there’s some good news and some bad news with this information.
I’ll start with the “bad news.”
I’m not advising that you begin to eat cheese, drink milk, or anything like that. I wish that was something I could give an enthusiastic thumbs up, too.
On the other hand, if you want to incorporate a new “wonderfood” into your diet that could help you experience “Health As It Ought To Be”, then there’s a certain kind of dairy that I think you should be quite excited about.
It’s known as colostrum
Here’s a crazy fact. Odds are you used to drink colostrum. Depending on how old you are, it’s likely been 20, 40, even 60 years since you last had it.
We’re pretty excited about using colostrum in our practice, and in the next few minutes, I’m going to show you what’s so great about this little-known form of dairy.
Why Every Mother In The World Uses Colostrum
Colostrum is also known as “first milk”
That’s not a slogan that some company came up with. It actually describes how colostrum first appears in the process of rearing children.
As you know, milk is one of those things that’s really only for infants. This is true of all mammals. Oddly enough, we’re the only species on the planet who continues to drink milk after infancy. And, we’re also the only one who drinks the milk of other species. But that’s not what I’m here to discuss…
Now, “first milk” is really important for infants.
That’s because when children are born, they are helpless. They have poorly developed immune systems and also have little strength of their own.
The only way that a child can grow is by receiving nutrition from their mother, and colostrum is one of the essential building blocks of good health for infants (regardless of species).
Most mammals will die if they don’t get colostrum within the first few weeks of birth.
That’s not an exaggeration. It’s that important for early life.
The qualities of colostrum are so important that your life literally depended on it once.
So what makes colostrum so special?
I’m glad you asked.
The Incredible Qualities of Colostrum
In all of nutrition, colostrum is one of the most well-studied and one of the most well-understood nutritional substances.
If it wasn’t for the study of colostrum, we wouldn’t have created the vaccine for polio. And dozens of studies have shown that it’s quite effective at fighting some of the deadliest diseases known to man.
Here’s something I find quite remarkable about colostrum.
It’s actually been proven to be three times more effective than the flu vaccine. That’s not a trivial fact to be ignored. That’s solid science showing you how beneficial nature can be for optimized health.
Now what I’ve done is shown you what colostrum can do.
So here’s what’s inside of colostrum that makes it something you should seriously consider taking every day.
:: Proline rich peptides (PRPs) – One of the foundational elements of colostrum, they work together with the thymus gland to help heighten the ability of the immune system. They actually work as hormones, and when introduced into the body, they help T-lymphocytes work more efficiently.
PRPs also work to produce more cytokines as well as helping the body produce more natural killer cells (NK cells) which seek out pathogens and foreign cells and target them for destruction.
Yes, it sounds like sci-fi, but it’s what makes colostrum (and PRPs) so unique.
:: Lactoperoxidase You might have heard of these before as they’re talked about quite a bit when people talk about antibacterials. Lactoperoxidase is an anti-microbial agent.
This element is what helps young babies ward off bacteria and other pathogens when they are young before their immune systems are fully developed. Part of how lactoperoxidase works is it helps your body’s white blood cells work more efficiently.
Some research has demonstrated that, with colostrum supplementation, white blood cells can kill cancer cells.
:: Lactobacillus acidophilus: This is one of the more famous probiotics, as there is quite a bit of research that shows it to be quite adept at helping to rebuild the gut. As Sovereign Laboratories notes, the presence of cultures like this is quite helpful at fixing one of the biggest problems for Americans called leaky gut.
They write:
GI health is vital to disease prevention at all ages. GI permeability (Leaky Gut Syndrome) is a pandemic problem with a majority of our population affected.[48] Odds are this means you and your whole family. It is acknowledged to be the primary cause of autoimmune and allergic responses and the cause of many chronic disease conditions.[49]
It is caused by taking antibiotics, pain and other medications (see FDA warnings), acidic beverages (sodas, coffee etc), alcohol, pesticides, and other environmental factors. It results in allowing foreign particles and toxins to cross into our bloodstream through our GI and stomach lining that produce adverse immune reactions, internal infections and other conditions that include the destruction of our own body structure and tissue. Probiotics cannot prevent and heal GI tissue. They only crowd out bad bacteria to reduce infections.
:: Lactoferrin and hemopexin A lot of the peer reviewed research on colostrum focuses on these two components. It’s believed that part of the reason colostrum is an anti-aging compound is because of the presence of lactoferrin.
Some studies have shown that lactoferrin and hemopexin can help bond to old iron circulating in the body and help remove it from the body. The theory is such removal can actually extend life as new, fresh blood is then allowed to circulate throughout the body.
:: Nucleosides. These are found in regular dairy, but, in colostrum, their levels are far higher. The exciting thing about dietary nucelosides is they actually work to make your immune system more “intelligent.”
Instead of just heightening immune response (which can exacerbate autoimmune conditions), it actually helps your immune system seek out and target known “bad guys.” Since colostrum has more of these, it means you’re a better bad guy fighter than you were without it.
If you want to know more about how colostrum works, you can to head to www.pubmed.gov and then search on colostrum, bovine colostrum, immunoglobulin, cytokines, interleukin, Lactoferrin, etc. to see more about this exciting supplement.
I’m not going to lie, you’re going to find so much information about colostrum it’ll be overwhelming, but at least you’ll be able to see how the claims made around colostrum can be backed up with science.
Let’s Talk About What Else Colostrum Can Do For You
Now that you’ve seen what makes colostrum so special, it’s time you see how it can change your life.
The following is lifted from Sovereign Laboratories.
Now full disclosure here, we sell Sovereign Laboratories products in our store at Robinhood Integrative Health.
And as you’ll see, all of their claims are authenticated with a wealth of research, so I’m including their health claims knowing full well that they’re not just blowing smoke.
With all of the debate going on about unsubtantiated health claims, you can rest assured this isn’t pseudoscience in the least.
- Help fight off and eliminate infectious processes. Clinically proven against nature’s most virulent viruses. It has been shown to be more than three times as effective as vaccines against flu. It helps stop and helps eliminate all types of infection throughout the body, even cryptosporidial diarrhea in late stage AIDS patients who have virtually no effective immune response.[20],[21] It mobilizes macrophages, T-cells and CD-4 lymphocytes and supercharges NK (Natural Killer cell) responses by up to twenty times. It activates the immediate production of defense mechanisms and coordinates body defenses for optimum health, something no plant or chemical substance can even come close to.
- Helps improve immune function: Colostrum is a true immune modulator. It is the only immune support that does not rev up an already over-responding immune response.[22] Colostrum’s components help balance immune responses and can assist in bringing back into balance over or improper immune responses that are associated with autoimmune conditions,[23] allergies,[24] respiratory health, blood sugar,[25] etc. Colostrum is the only immune support appropriate for these conditions.[26] If you suffer from any other these conditions, you should never take so-called immune enhancers (boosters), as they can accelerate and worsen symptoms.
- Stimulates growth and regeneration of our all body systems. Our body goes through constant renewal. Every seven years you have a completely new body. Why not give it the same regenerative and growth possibilities it has at our beginning? Muscle, skin, bone, brain and nervous tissue regeneration is proven.[27],[28],[29],[30],[31],[32] Athletes, aging seniors, our children and those who just want more lean muscle tone for a radiant appearance, all can benefit from colostrum use.
- [Improved Athletic Performance] Athletes: Clinical studies show that athletes have up to 20% more lean muscle strength,[33] stamina and performance,[34],[35]stronger immune defenses (helps eliminate the after work out susceptibility to infections),[36] plus accelerated healing from injuries and strenuous physical exertion.[37],[38] Colostrum also enhances brain chemical response[39],[40],[41] for better visualizations and concentration.
- Dieting: Accelerates and supercharges every diet and exercise program. Colostrum has been clinically proven to help us burn fat, build and retain muscle, increase metabolism, and stop burning muscle tissue between meals. It helps balance blood sugar for enhanced energy and vitality and helps better brain chemical balance that lessens mood swings and cravings.
- Blood pressure: One of the curses of modern life is high blood pressure. Milk has long been known for its ability to help maintain healthy blood pressure.[42] Peptides have been identified in milk and colostrum which function as ACE-inhibitors to help lower blood pressure significantly.
- Anti-aging: Who doesn’t want more muscle and strength, a sharper mental process, less fat around the middle, better immune responses, radiant GI health and optimum nutritional uptake? Colostrum is clinically proven to provide all of this; it also helps reduce inflammation[43],[44] and better balance brain chemicals. Better, more effective than anti-oxidants, growth hormone or any other therapy for strength, mobility, brain chemical function and protection and infectious defense necessary for active senior lifestyles.[45],[46],[47]
Not to mention it can be used to promote better health, can give you a healthier immune system, help you digest fat even better than before, and much more.
Colostrum really is an amazing product that I believe many people should take,
Remember, I think that this is the one form of dairy you shouldn’t disown for good.
And, if you have a dairy sensitivity, you are probably okay to take this since it contains very small amounts of casein and whey and much more of the beneficial constituents.
Since most dairy allergies are actually the result of Leaky Gut Syndrome, taking colostrum might actually help restore your gut and help heal a dairy allergy altogether.
Now, as always, before you begin taking any nutritional supplement you need to talk to your physician first.
Never forget that.
Hope you enjoyed what you learned.
Talk soon,
Dr. Wiggy
www.HealthAsItOughtToBe.com