Customer question: Do Transfer Factors really work? Are there any serious scientific publications about them?
Legal disclaimer
Transfer Factors are ingredients of food supplements and are not medicinal products. According to EU regulations, food supplements are not intended to diagnose or treat diseases. This article is for educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult your doctor when considering supplement use.
Transfer Factor in scientific research
Transfer Factor is the name for a low-molecular-weight extract originally obtained from donor leukocytes (white blood cells). It was first described in the 1950s and remains of interest in immunological studies as a biologically active compound.
In 4Life food supplements, Transfer Factors are extracted from cow colostrum and chicken egg yolks. While they share the name, these differ from lymphocyte extracts used in clinical research. They belong to a similar category of immune-derived ingredients, but their source and composition are distinct.
Transfer Factor in medical literature
A valuable scientific review comes from researchers in Italy and the USA: Transfer Factor: an Overlooked Potential for Immune Support.
This article summarizes decades of research into Transfer Factors and their role in cellular response. The authors highlight the importance of continuing studies on their activity and potential role in future health challenges.
As they write, Transfer Factor is “a low molecular weight lymphocyte extract capable of transferring antigen-specific cell-mediated immunity.” The paper also discusses the historical interest in the compound and the ongoing limitations in research funding and patent viability.
Transfer Factors are also referenced in thousands of publications indexed on PubMed – you can explore them by searching the database.
What Transfer Factors are used in supplements?
As noted in another peer-reviewed article on immune support strategies, “Commercially available traditional Transfer Factor extracts are typically derived from colostrum (first milk produced by mammals), avian egg yolks, or porcine spleen.”
In the case of 4Life supplements, only cow colostrum and chicken eggs are used as the biological source for Transfer Factor extraction.
For more on the background and science of this ingredient, see our educational blog post: What is Transfer Factor – does such an ingredient exist?.
Author: Alicja Krzywańska-Podermańska
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