“In our conversations with functional medicine practitioners, we heard that they were impressed with the research showing bovine colostrum’s ability to help strengthen the gut lining and its benefits for immune health,” Pam Cebulski, general manager of consumer brands at PanTheryx, told NutraIngredients-USA.
“We saw this as an opportunity to develop a Life’s First Naturals product specific to these practitioners and for their patients.”
Life’s First Naturals PRO, marketed as an all-in-one digestive, microbiome and immune health supplement, ships to health care practitioners starting January 2023.
Cow colostrum for human health
The launch is an extension of the Life’s First Naturals consumer brand, which PanTheryx introduced direct-to-consumer in 2020 as a natural fount of immune factors, protective proteins, growth factors and prebiotics found in its ColostrumOne cow colostrum ingredient.
“As the first milk produced by mothers, including cows, colostrum is often referred to as nature’s original superfood because it contains essential nutrients that support the immune system, jumpstart the digestive system and seed a healthy gut microbiome in a newborn’s first few days of life,” Cebulski explained, adding that there are thousands of studies to support colostrum’s effectiveness and safety in children and adults.
PanTheryx draws specific attention to a 2001 study published in the Clinical Science journal demonstrating bovine colostrum’s effectiveness in blocking NSAID-induced gastrointestinal damage in humans.
“One of the specific reasons I recommend bovine colostrum is due to its ability to help strengthen the intestinal lining, which is particularly important because nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs have been shown to impact intestinal permeability,” said Dr. Michael Roizen, chief wellness officer emeritus at the Cleveland Clinic and PanTheryx scientific advisory board member.
Cebulski adds that cow colostrum has significant immune-bearing properties beyond its more widely known prebiotic gut balancing and healing effects. These include immunoglobulins for passive immunity, cytokines to moderate immune response, oligosaccharides to support gut microflora and immune factors like lactoferrin and lysozyme proteins to guard against foreign invaders.
Extra-strength for health care practitioners
Life’s First Naturals PRO is formulated with a more potent ColostrumOne Extra Strength sequel, which undergoes a special process to protect the bioactive components from digestive acids and enzymes.
“This proprietary product is scientifically shown to increase protection of Immunoglobulin G (IgG), immune and growth factors as they enter the digestive tract,” Cebulski said.
“In a study published in the peer-reviewed journal PLOS ONE, the new matrix-protected colostrum delivers 160% more immune bioactives resulting in twice the immune protection and three times stronger protection against GI inflammation in an in vivo model.”
The Phoenix-based company also recently announced a multi-year collaboration with the SunPlus nutrition company in China to debut its Colostrum Basic Protein and Immunoglobulin G formula in Sunplus’s Natrapure CBPS Milk Powder.
