Bovine colostrum supplementation does not affect nutrient absorptive capacity in healthy young men

Bovine colostrum (BC) contains bioactive components that have been shown to enhance gastrointestinal development and increase nutrient absorptive capacity in neonatal animals. Recent studies in adult humans have shown that BC increases lean body mass and improves exercise performance and a number of authors have suggested that BC may elicit these effects by enhancing intestinal nutrient absorption. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of BC supplementation on plasma nutrient and/or insulin responses to a standard feed as a marker of intestinal absorptive capacity. Twelve healthy adult males consumed 60 g · day−1 of either concentrated BC protein powder (n = 6) or concentrated whey protein (WP; n = 6) for eight weeks in a randomised, double-blind, placebo controlled, parallel design. Plasma alanine, glucose and insulin concentrations were measured in response to oral L-alanine (OATT) and oral D-glucose (OGTT) tolerance tests prior to and after 8 weeks of supplementation. There were no significant differences in the plasma alanine, glucose or insulin responses to the OATT or OGTT between groups at Week 0 (P > 0.29), and the 8 weeks of supplementation had no significant effect on the responses in either group (P > 0.29). Supplementation with BC does not affect the plasma nutrient or insulin response to a standard feed. Therefore, we would conclude that BC does not affect intestinal nutrient absorption in healthy adult humans.