Donna Gates | Lyme Disease, Gut Ecology and Why Fermented Foods Beat Probiotics for Chronic Infections

From Integrative Lyme Solutions with Dr. Karlfeldt by Dr. Michael Karlfeldt

June 29, 2026 · 43 min · Episode 1

About this episode

Dr. Karlfeldt interviews Donna Gates about the connection between gut health and chronic infections, emphasizing the benefits of fermented foods over probiotics.

What if the fatigue, brain fog, and infections you've been fighting for years all trace back to the same root - a gut that never had a chance to recover? In this episode of Integrative Lyme Solutions, Dr. K sits down with Donna Gates, author of The Body Ecology Diet and founder of Body Ecology, to cover a lot of ground: long COVID, Lyme disease, candida, biofilms, autism, and why fermented foods do something no probiotic capsule can replicate. Donna shares her own decades-long journey through antibiotic-induced illness, yeast overgrowth, and a recent long-haul COVID experience that sent her back to the drawing board - and ultimately led to her new book, Taming the Dragon. The conversation gets into why Lyme and candida are so resistant to treatment, how biofilms protect pathogens from the immune system, the surprising role of fermented vegetables in nasal health, and what the diversity inside a single head of cabbage has to do with your brain function. If you or someone you love is dealing with a chronic infection and not getting answers, this episode is worth your full attention. Key Takeaways: 0:00 Introduction 1:51 How the Body Ecology Diet started with a yeast infection and a…

People in this episode

Host: Dr. Karlfeldt

Guest: Donna Gates

Topics covered

Lyme disease
gut ecology
fermented foods
chronic infections
long COVID

Keywords

Lyme disease
gut health
fermented foods
chronic infections
long COVID
biofilms
candida

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Body Ecology

Books & works: The Body Ecology Diet, Taming the Dragon