Men Are Drinking Breast Milk For A Workout?
Is drinking breastmilk a viable option for gaining muscle?
We’ve heard plenty of tactics, tips, and tricks on how to build muscle. We’ve heard about carbo-loading and we’ve heard about the need for protein shakes, but drinking breastmilk?
Apparently, a movement is rising where men are praising the properties of breastmilk on their growing muscles.
On the Reddit subforum/subreddit Bodybuilding, internet users praised the drinks as a great resource for protein.
“It's one of the most anabolic substances you can get, outside of gear,” wrote one redditor. “While my gf was breastfeeding she would set a couple of ounces aside for me each day so I could put It in my shakes.”
And taking the situation a bit to the naughty side, the redditor responded to a question of whether its more fun to drink “from the tap” by saying, “It is.”
“There actually is research that shows colostrum (the stuff that comes from tits pre-lactation), both human and bovine, contains IgF-1 and other possibly beneficial hormones,” wrote another internet user. “BBers have been drinking bovine colostrum for decades.”
Health Benefits?
But is it healthy and safe for men to drink breast milk for the purposes of bodybuilding?
Well, the USDA says that breast milk is typically 87 percent water. The rest is seven percent lactose, 3.8 percent fat, and 1 percent protein. The nutritional value, however, is more random based on the drinkers’ age and the woman’s diet. But on average, one cup of breast milk has 172 calories, 2.5 grams of protein, 10 grams of fat, and 16 grams of carbs.
That’s a lot of numbers, but the point is that there’s not a lot of protein in breast milk. Conversely, cow’s milk or soy milk each has around eight grams of protein. The reason breast milk is great for babies is because of the lack of proteins. If babies tried to drink eight grams of protein per meal, they would die.
But while that makes breast milk great for babies. It also means that they’re not great for grown men. And, it ultimately doesn’t create the same effect of a protein shake.
Related: Men Who Exercise May Have Smarter Babies
Where To Get It
But what if you decide to try it out anyway? Where would you even get breast milk? Well, you could be like the above redditor and get it from a girlfriend (or maybe even a family member/close friend). Or, you could buy the stuff.
24-year-old Rafaela Lamprou made $6,000 selling her breast milk. The hotel worker, who gave birth to a son in 2017 and has a slightly older daughter, overproduces milk. And she decided to make money off of the extra stuff.
“So I asked a couple of mums who were having trouble breast-feeding if they wanted it,” Lamprou, who’s based in Cyprus, told Caters News Agency. “I started giving it away.”
“It started with men who were interested in bodybuilding. They say it is good for building muscle mass… Now I breast-feed on demand.”
But here’s the thing, buying breast milk can be expensive. Then, you also have to worry about the health of the woman making the milk, her diet before pumping, and the cleanliness of her breast pump. So ultimately, you’re taking a lot of risks.
Breast Milk & Bodybuilding
Honestly, we think that drinking breast milk for a workout isn’t worth it. The price is too much, the risks are too much, and protein levels are too little.
But do you agree? If you think we missed something, let us know down in the comments below.
