4 min readWHAT DO COWBOYS, chiropractors, and professional models all have in common?
Apparently, it’s a love of bovine colostrum supplements.
And, if you’re listening to companies who sell colostrum pills, powders, or even sodas, there’s supposedly a lot to love.
According to these companies, supplementing with bovine colostrum can do any number of the following: stoke strength and lean muscle mass, enhance stamina, improve fitness recovery, decrease heartburn frequency, improve IBS symptoms, reduce bloating, thicken hair, diminish wrinkles and skin concerns, and holy shit, right?
In case all that sounds too good to be true, these supplement companies argue, just take a look at all the scientific evidence supporting those claims.
Why take literally any other supplement if colostrum can power your workouts, heal your insides, and make your outsides look even better And so what if a jar costs upwards of $100?
Well, if you take the time to dig into all that research, you’ll find that the science on bovine colostrum supplements is … complicated.
What Is Colostrum?
IT’S THE NUTRIENT-DENSE pre-milk fluid secreted from a mammal’s breast shortly after giving birth.
Yes, you read that correctly.
Colostrum is higher in protein and some nutrients than normal cow’s milk. It is also appetizingly known as “foremilk.”
You won’t find colostrum naturally occurring foods that you may find on the market, but you’re starting to see the processed form available in certain supplements, where, the main ingredient comes from a cow, not a human. (Thank god?)
For farmers, colostrum isn’t exactly a waste product. “Farms would not discard colostrum beyond what they need to feed calves,” says Thomas R. Overton, Ph.D., professor and chair of the Department of Animal Science at Cornell University.
“A common practice would be to freeze and store ‘excess’ colostrum to use during periods when colostrum production is insufficient to meet needs,” Overton says. “That said, there is a market for farms to sell ‘excess’ colostrum for human use.”
And humans are taking colostrum supplements for all sorts of things.
Will Colostrum Supplements Help Me Get Ripped?
THE SCIENCE ISN’T so sure.
Recently, there have been two somewhat promising pieces of research that indicate a link.
The first, a 2026 study, found that rugby players enhanced their lower body power after eight weeks on colostrum supplements … but the study only involved 29 study participants.
The second is a 2024 review that linked colostrum supplementation to better exercise performance and recovery … but it was funded by a major dairy corporation.
But, wait! There’s also some recent research linking colostrum supplementation to reduced body fat.
Yes, a 2026 review in Nutrients found a few connections, namely that older people who took a 60 grams of a colostrum supplement daily for eight weeks reduced their body fat by 0.4 percent and that another group taking 10 grams daily for 12 weeks had less leg fat than compared to study participants on a placebo.
One hang up: The researchers weren’t sure if the colostrum itself produced these effects or if it was other dietary changes within the time of the study that produced the effect. And also: just 0.4 percent?
With all these studies, it’s critical to interrogate the findings, says Abby Langer, RD, a Men’s Health Nutrition Advisor and author of Good Food, Bad Diet.
“They say that outcomes were significant in many cases, but when we look at the actual numbers, they are not impressive at all,” says Langer. “There is a huge difference between significance in a research study and actual clinical significance in real life.”
Will Colostrum Help My Gut Feel Better?
THERE IS SCIENCE on colostrum and a healthy gut microbiome, but that research has been done on babies.
A 2024 research review on adults did show some benefits to colostrum supplementation and alleviating diarrhea, but mixed results on general gut health.
Colostrum supplement companies will broadcast glowing testimonials from happy clients about how their products helped heal their guts, but that’s anecdotal research, not clinical.
Supplementing with colostrum for gut health is only for very specific populations, says Langer. (Ahem, those with diarrhea issues.) And then, that supplementation should be done with the help of a doctor and/or dietitian. “I wouldn’t recommend colostrum for health in the general population,” Langer says.
Will Colostrum Improve My Hair and Skin?
WE DON’T KNOW.
If you comb through the supporting research provided by colostrum supplement companies, you’ll find that much of it was conducted on rodents, in test tubes, or extrapolates findings from other studies and applies them them to colostrum supplements.
Should You Take Colostrum Supplements?
WELL, THERE’S NO scientific research indicating that colostrum is unsafe to take. And there’s some emerging research that’s promising. But let’s all take a breather.
“My opinion on colostrum is that the research is underwhelming. It does not match the fantastical claims that companies are making about it,” says Langer. “Until we have some solid evidence of the benefits of colostrum, I wouldn’t recommend it.”
Even GNC’s 2025 trend report on supplements gave colostrum a “B,” saying that the current lack of research prevented the supplement from earning a higher grade. And this is a company that makes money off of selling colostrum supplements, mind you.
Paul Kita is a Deputy Editor at Men's Health, where he has covered food, cooking, nutrition, supplements, grooming, tech, travel, and fatherhood at the brand for more than 15 years. He is also the author of two Men's Health cookbooks, Guy Gourmet and A Man, A Pan, A Plan, and the winner of a James Beard Award.
