Colostrum Benefits for Leaky Gut, Autoimmunity & Immune Balance

Today, we’re talking about colostrum—nature’s first superfood that’s making waves for gut health and immune balance.

What Is Colostrum?

So, let’s start with the basics. Colostrum is the first milk produced by mammals right after birth. Think of it as a nutrient-packed kickstarter for life. Whether it’s a cow, a goat, or a human, the immune-boosting peptides in colostrum are identical across all mammals. That means bovine colostrum, which is the most widely available, works just as well for us humans. It’s loaded with antibodies, growth factors, and special peptides that do wonders for your body.

Unlike regular milk, colostrum is a nutritional powerhouse. It’s has higher concentrations of vitamins like thiamin, riboflavin, B12, vitamin E and D, as well as minerals like calcium, copper, iron, zinc, magnesium, manganese, and phosphorus. It also has about 20-25% of its solids are antibodies like IgG, IgE, IgA etc. These fight off harmful bacteria in the gut, which is super important because, let’s be honest, the standard American diet leaves most of us with way more bad bacteria than good. When the gut bacteria are out of balance, your immune system suffers.

It contains lactoferrin which acts as an antimicrobial and antiviral component. It also helps your immune system reset which means your body can have a more normal immune reaction to assaults and respond appropriately.

It also contains around 7% fat with components of that being omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids, it has linoleic acid, short chain fatty acids, and other fats important for health. Linoleic acid is an essential fatty acid the body has to get from the diet because we can’t make it on our own. It helps maintain a healthy skin barrier, helps brain function, and it converts into other fatty acids and things like prostaglandins and leukotrienes. Prostaglandins take part in the inflammatory cascade and leukotrienes are chemicals released by the body to work on inflammation. Having them in colostrum means your body learns to not overreact to inflammation.

Why Your Gut Loves Colostrum

Your gut is like the control center for your health. A leaky gut—where the intestinal lining lets toxins and undigested food sneak into your bloodstream—can trigger everything from allergies to autoimmune diseases. Research, including thousands of studies on PubMed, shows colostrum can repair that gut lining. It’s got growth factors that heal the tiny villi in your intestines and peptides that balance your immune system so it works normally again.

Picture this: 80% of chronic diseases, from food sensitivities to even Alzheimer’s and autism, might be linked to gut issues. When you have leaky gut, it is easier for microbes, pathogens, undigested food, toxins, etc can get into the bloodstream via the intestinal lining which can cause your innate immunity to take action.  That’s how food sensitivities and allergies start and then it can expand to creating sensitivities to other foods. This is a Th2- type immune response. This can also cause your one autoimmune disease to turn into 2 or 3 total. The pro-inflammatory cytokine response is what is at play in autoimmunity and colostrum helps calm that response.

Taking 5-10 grams of colostrum powder daily for six weeks which can seal up that leaky gut and get your digestion back on track. Studies on rats showed gut repair in just six weeks—how cool is that?

Healing the gut will improve that cytokine imbalance caused by the pathogens, bacteria etc and calm those innate immune system reactions.

Immune Balance, Not Boost

Now, let’s talk immunity. You’ve probably heard about “boosting” your immune system, but here’s the thing: if you’ve got an autoimmune condition or allergies, boosting can make things worse. Colostrum doesn’t just crank up your immune system; it balances it. Those peptides I mentioned? They regulate cytokines—those little messengers that tell your immune system what to do. Too many cytokines can cause inflammation, but colostrum keeps them in check, calming things down without shutting your defenses off. Boosting your immune system might look like taking antioxidants or something like that to improve function. In autoimmunity your immune system is kind of in overdrive and we want to regulate it so it works properly and doesn’t over react.

This is huge for anyone with allergies or autoimmune diseases like celiac, Hashimoto’s or lupus. It’s not about suppressing your immune system like some medications do—it’s about resetting it to work the way it’s supposed to.

What your immune system is doing in autoimmunity is important. Immune system balancing is more important than immune boosting. You don’t want to be taking things that boost your immune system when you have active autoimmunity. You want to calm it and help it regulate itself. Conventional medicine on the other hand will suppress your immune system with things like steroids and that might be okay for you but know that it is a bandaid and while you are on steroids, you can be doing everything to get it to re-regulate.

Colostrum is what starts an infants immune system which is why it is the first three days of  milk released from the breast in humans and animals. Kind of makes me wonder if calves are getting colostrum for as popular as it is right now. Naturally through the aging process, some of our genes may be turned off through things like toxins and some foods we eat and colostrum can turn them back on.

The genes linking you to autoimmunity are there- you can’t do anything about that. The autoimmunity is the weak link in your genes. You have control for the most part over the environmental triggers to autoimmunity, you can heal your gut (and you may have to do it at least once a year). You can use colostrum to reset your immune system but colostrum is only a bandaid if you don’t do something about the reason your immune system is freaking out.

What About Dairy Sensitivities?

I know some of you are thinking, “Wait, colostrum comes from cows—won’t that mess with my dairy allergy or sensitivity?” Great question! The cool thing is, colostrum’s peptides can actually reduce allergic reactions by calming down the overactive immune response that causes them. Only about 5% of people might notice a mild detox reaction, kind of like your body flushing out toxins. If that happens, just lower the dose, drink plenty of water, and ease back in. Most people tolerate it just fine and see huge benefits. If you have a severe dairy allergy, I would not recommend taking colostrum just to be safe.  There is a Proline Rich Polypeptide spray you can try that can help prevent an Immune response because it downregulates the products of the inflammatory interleukin immune cells that cause Th2 responses. So it normalizes the cytokine response so you don’t develop symptoms associated with allergy.  I just want to be clear this is not medical advice, this is educational. Discuss with your doctor the use of these things if you have a severe dairy allergy. Allergies are said to be an imbalance of Th2, Th1 and Th17 (I’ve likely discussed these in earlier episodes).

Colostrum is great at healing the gut so if you can tolerate it, it is a great option. You remove the things causing the leaky gut, take colostrum and heal your gut. It is said that this could potentially remove food sensitivities. I worked on healing my gut without colostrum and I was able to reintroduce dairy here and there. I do some cheeses and I’ve had dairy based ice cream a couple of times without too much of a reaction. I do not have it often to avoid the issue with molecular mimicry though.

If you take colostrum and have a reaction, it could be a herxhemier type reaction or maybe your body just doesn’t like it. You have to play around with it, drink lots of water so your body can flush out things. Maybe cut back on the amount you are taking. Or heal your gut without it. There are other ways, it is just said this is one of the best ways to do it.  As with any supplement, quality matters. Third party testing matters. Cows are often given antibiotics so you want to be sure the source is clean. You don’t want antibiotic residue in your colostrum.

How to Use Colostrum

Host: So, how do you get started? Look for high-quality, first-milking colostrum—that’s the stuff collected right after birth, packed with 3-4% peptides. Avoid heavily processed products, as they can lose those precious bioactive components. Aim for 5-10 grams of powder a day for about six weeks, and consider a Proline Rich Peptide spray for an extra boost. Make sure the product is tested for antibiotics and free from bovine growth hormones for peace of mind.  NuMedica ImmunoG PRP™ Capsules from my dispesnary are also an option. fullscript.com/welcome/hfh

The Big Picture

Here’s the takeaway: colostrum is like hitting the reset button on your gut and immune system. It’s been used by mammals for millions of years to jumpstart life, and it can do the same for us adults by turning on genes that repair our gut and sharpen our minds. From reducing inflammation to improving digestion and even supporting brain health, colostrum is like the conductor of a health symphony, harmonizing all the pieces.

So, give it a try! Talk to your doctor, grab some high-quality colostrum, and see how it transforms your wellness routine. Your gut—and your whole body—will thank you.

That’s it for today’s episode. If you loved this deep dive into colostrum, share it with a friend and leave us a review. Go to my website to sign up for my newsletter and get the definitive guide to hashimoto’s. Until next time, stay curious and stay healthy!