Written by Taylor Woosley, Staff Writer. 12-week supplementation of 3.2g colostrum daily significantly increased IgG and significantly lowered IL-10 levels compared to placebo.
Football is a team sport characterized by intermittent efforts, combining high-speeds and intensity with low-intensity periods1. Strenuous high-intensity or long-duration exercise can induce muscle damage caused by mechanical stress and subsequent inflammatory responses including reactive oxygen species and cytokine production2. Additionally, intense and prolonged exercise bouts can produce a temporary immunodepression, associated with a decreased host protection3.
Bovine colostrum (BC), the first milk produced from cows, is increasingly used as a nutritional supplement to promote gut function and health4. BC is a rich source of nutrition and contains high levels of immunoglobulins, known as antibodies, that are immunomodulatory and lactoferrin, which exerts antimicrobial activity5. Furthermore, research shows that colostrum can attenuate inflammatory and muscle-damage-related markers induced through strenuous exercise, while protecting against exercise-induced gut permeability6.
Cieslicka et al. conducted a 24-week double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized crossover study to assess the effects of 6-month bovine colostrum supplementation on immune system functioning, iron management, and anabolic/catabolic balance in young football players. Subject inclusion consisted of males partaking in competitive football training for at least 3 years, who were not taking medication during the study. 28 participants were assigned to either the BC group (n=19) or the placebo group (n=9). The BC group was instructed to consume four gastro-resistant capsules of BC every morning and evening. The daily BC dose contained 3.2 g colostrum, 30 mg lactoferrin, 1050 mg IgG, and 16µg IGF. The placebo group received a powdered milk supplement at the same dose.
Subjects completed a physical exercise test at baseline, halfway through the study, and the end of study which included a multistage 20 m shuttle run test. Blood samples were taken during each exercise test at three time points: pre-exercise, post-exercise, and after a 3-hour restitution to measure insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), testosterone, cortisol, interleukin-10 (IL-10), interleukin-6 (IL-6), IgG, hepcidin, tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α), and lactoferrin.
A paired sample t-test was conducted to analyze the differences between results obtained at baseline, month 3, and month 6 for normally distributed data and the Wilcoxon signed rank test was utilized for non-normally distributed data. Furthermore, a repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) with Tukey post hoc test was used to compare data at the 3 time points and the Friedman’s test was utilized for non-normally distributed data. Significant findings of the study are as follows:
- At 3 months of BC supplementation, a significant increase in IgG was noted compared to control at the three time points (pre-exercise, post-exercise, and 3 h restitution) (p = 0.0033). Additionally, the same effect was observed at 6 months of supplementation (p < 0.001).
- Post-exercise IL-10 values were significantly lower in the BC group after 6 months compared to baseline (p < 0.001). Furthermore, cortisol was significantly decreased after the exercise test at 6 months in the BC group (p < 0.001).
Results of the 12-week study show that bovine colostrum supplementation reduced the post-exercise inflammatory response and increased testosterone levels in male football players. Further research using larger subject samples and study lengths are necessary to better comprehend the potential benefits of colostrum on exercise parameters.
Source: Cieślicka, Mirosława, Błażej Stankiewicz, Radosław Muszkieta, Małgorzata Tafil-Klawe, Jacek Klawe, Anna Skarpańska-Stejnborn, and Joanna Ostapiuk-Karolczuk. “Long-Term Bovine Colostrum Supplementation in Football Players.” Nutrients 15, no. 22 (2023): 4779.
© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
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Posted January 17, 2024.
Taylor Woosley studied biology at Purdue University before becoming a 2016 graduate of Columbia College Chicago with a major in Writing. She currently resides in Glen Ellyn, IL.
References:
- Teixeira JE, Forte P, Ferraz R, et al. Monitoring Accumulated Training and Match Load in Football: A Systematic Review. Int J Environ Res Public Health. Apr 8 2021;18(8)doi:10.3390/ijerph18083906
- Tanabe Y, Fujii N, Suzuki K. Dietary Supplementation for Attenuating Exercise-Induced Muscle Damage and Delayed-Onset Muscle Soreness in Humans. Nutrients. Dec 24 2021;14(1)doi:10.3390/nu14010070
- Crescioli C. Vitamin D, exercise, and immune health in athletes: A narrative review. Frontiers in immunology. 2022;13:954994. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2022.954994
- Sangild PT, Vonderohe C, Melendez Hebib V, Burrin DG. Potential Benefits of Bovine Colostrum in Pediatric Nutrition and Health. Nutrients. Jul 26 2021;13(8)doi:10.3390/nu13082551
- Arslan A, Kaplan M, Duman H, et al. Bovine Colostrum and Its Potential for Human Health and Nutrition. Front Nutr. 2021;8:651721. doi:10.3389/fnut.2021.651721
- Davison G. The Use of Bovine Colostrum in Sport and Exercise. Nutrients. May 24 2021;13(6)doi:10.3390/nu13061789
