- Colostrum (also known as beestings or first milk) is a form of milk produced by the mammary glands in late pregnancy and the few days after giving birth.
- Human and bovine colostrums are thick, sticky and yellowish.
- In humans, it has high concentrations of nutrients and antibodies, but it is small in quantity.
- Colostrum is high in carbohydrates, high in protein, high in antibodies, and low in fat (as human newborns may find fat difficult to digest).
- Newborns have very small digestive systems, and colostrum delivers its nutrients in a very concentrated low-volume form.
- It has a mild laxative effect, encouraging the passing of the baby’s first stool, which is called meconium.
- Colostrum clears excess bilirubin, a waste product of dead red blood cells which is produced in large quantities at birth due to blood volume reduction, from the infant’s body and helps prevent jaundice.
- Colostrum contains large numbers of antibodies called “secretory immunoglobulin” (IgA) that help protect the mucous membranes in the throat, lungs, and intestines of the infant.
- Leukocytes are also present in large numbers; these begin protecting the infant from harmful viruses and bacteria.
- Ingesting colostrum establishes beneficial bacteria in the digestive tract.
- Premature babies tend to fare better on human colostrum than commercial infant formulas.
- Human milk contains special components, called growth modulators, that help the premature baby’s digestive system adjust to oral feedings.
- Research indicates that premature babies fed formula tend to vomit more and continue tube feeding longer than that fed human colostrum and breast milk.
