Dr. Steven Gundry: Is Fungus Secretly Running the World—and Your Gut?

Dave Asprey

Apr 15, 2025

Episode description

If your brain feels foggy, your mood swings like a pendulum, or your cravings seem to control you—this episode will flip what you think you know about your body and your mind. Because what if your thoughts… aren’t really yours?

In this mind-altering episode of The Human Upgrade, Dr. Steven Gundry reveals a startling new theory: your gut microbiome might be controlling your thoughts. From addiction and depression to obesity and inflammation, the microbes living in your gut—bacteria, fungi, viruses, even parasites—may be pulling the strings on your brain chemistry, mood, and behavior.

Dave Asprey and Dr. Gundry dive deep into The Gut-Brain Paradox, exposing how the gut-brain axis operates more like a microbial command center than a digestive system. You’ll learn why probiotic pills rarely work, how the wrong microbes can drive compulsive behavior, and how toxic foods, glyphosate, and antibiotics have turned our guts into neurological war zones.

Most shocking of all? Microbes may not just influence addiction—they may cause it.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• How your gut microbiome can hijack your brain and influence your thoughts and behavior

• Why certain microbes may actually cause addiction, obesity, and depression

• How antibiotics, glyphosate, and processed foods are turning your gut into a desert

• How to rebuild your gut ecosystem using postbiotics, fermented foods, and precision inputs

• Why food cravings might be microbial mind control—and what to do about it

• What the latest science reveals about the gut-brain axis, neurotransmitters, and neuroinflammation

Sponsors:

-Sunlighten | Go to https://www.sunlighten.com/dave/ and enter code DAVE at checkout to save up to $1,400.

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Resources:

• Dave Asprey’s New Book - Heavily Meditated: https://daveasprey.com/heavily-meditated/

• Dr. Gundry’s Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/drstevengundry/?hl=en

• Dr. Gundry’s Website: https://drgundry.com/

• Dr. Gundry’s New Book The Gut-Brain Paradox:

Mindsip insights from this episode:

Reevaluate germ theory to embrace terrain theory for health

Modern medicine's focus on Louis Pasteur's "germ theory" has overshadowed Antoine Béchamp's "terrain theory," which states that disease arises from an imbalanced internal environment, not just the germ itself.

#bacteria

#health

Combine prebiotics with probiotics for effective gut health

Simply taking probiotics without providing the right food (prebiotics) and environment for them is like throwing grass seed on desert sand and expecting it to grow.

#prebiotics

#probiotics

Avoid antibiotics for effective SIBO management

Treating Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO) with antibiotics can be counterproductive as it damages the gut wall and mitochondria, potentially making the condition worse.

#antibiotics

#SIBO

Identify glyphosate as key factor in American wheat toxicity

The reason many people react to American wheat but not European wheat is likely due to glyphosate, not the gluten or the wheat itself.

#nutrition

#toxin

Identify addictive bacteria to combat cravings

There are specific bacteria that make you seek out substances they enjoy, such as alcohol or opioids, and may be the root cause of addiction.

#addiction

#microbiome

Avoid obesity contagion by managing social microbiome exposure

You can "catch" an obesity-promoting microbiome from the people you spend time with, as these microbes are shared through social contact.

#microbiome

#obesity

Address leaky gut to prevent arterial calcification

Bacterial toxins (LPS) from a leaky gut can trigger immune cells to turn smooth muscle cells in your arteries into bone-producing cells, causing coronary calcium.