Scientific Opinion on the substantiation of health claims related to bovine
colostrum (ID 1472, 1473, 1474, 1475, 1476, 1889, 1890) pursuant to Article
13(1) of Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006[sup]1[/sup]
EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies (NDA)2, 3
European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), Parma, Italy
1. Charakterystyka żywności / składnika
The food constituent which is the subject of the health claims is bovine colostrum related to the following claimed effects: “immune health/source of immunoglobulins”, “supports immune function during periods of intense physical exercise”, “supports an improvement in exercise performance when combined with regular training”, “supports an increase in lean body mass when combined with resistance exercise”, “supports recovery following intense exercise”, “digestion health: bovine colostrum might help for the treatment of colitis/prevents diarrhoea, diminishes colicky symptoms/bovine colostrum is effective in the management of gastrointestinal disorders”, and “anti- asthénique (récupération)”.
Bovine colostrum is the milk produced by the bovine mammary gland during late pregnancy and the first few days after birth of the offspring. Bovine colostrum preparations are sold in the form of
powder and tablets. Colostrum contains immunoglobulins, lactoferrin, proline-rich polypeptide, cytokines, vitamins, minerals and growth factors, and is characterised by higher protein content than regular milk. However, the content of the different food constituents in bovine colostrum is not well- defined and varies among products available on the market.
The Panel notes that the references provided for the substantiation of the health claims considered in this opinion have used as intervention either concentrated bovine colostrum protein (i.e. standardised, low heat, low fat, low lactose colostrum powder containing 20 % Immunoglobulin G (IgG) by weight) which includes both casein and whey proteins, (e.g. Buckley et al., 2002; Coombes et al., 2002; Shing et al., 2006), whole bovine colostrum in powder form for which only energy and macronutrient composition was provided (Antonio et al., 2001), or immunoglobulin-enriched bovine colostrum (e.g. Plettenberg et al., 1993), and that the characterisation of the food, which is the subject of the health claims, is unclear. The Panel also notes that the concentrations of various components of bovine colostrum which are proposed to contribute to the claimed effects (e.g. lactoferrin, immunoglobulins, epidermal growth factor, transforming growth factor, etc.) have not been provided.
The Panel considers that the food constituent, bovine colostrum, which is the subject of this opinion, is not sufficiently characterised in relation to the claimed effects considered in this opinion.
The Panel concludes that a cause and effect relationship cannot be established between the consumption of bovine colostrum and the claimed effects considered in this opinion.
