On the latest episode of the Wellness Pro Academy podcast, Cate speaks with Dr. Michael Biamonte, founder of the Biamonte Center for Clinical Nutrition and co-creator of Bio cybernetics. With over 30 years of practice, Dr. Biamonte dives deep into the unseen epidemic of Candida overgrowth, explaining why it’s often misdiagnosed, how it creates systemic imbalance, and the precise, multi-phase treatment plan required for true recovery.

Bio cybernetics: Precision Nutrition from Aerospace Technology

Dr. Biamonte’s work is rooted in Bio cybernetics, an unprecedented computer software program that analyzes blood work, mineral tests, and other labs to pinpoint imbalances in the body.

Originally designed by Dr. Robert Santoro (developer of the life support systems on the lunar module) for aerospace purposes, the software was intended to precisely adjust astronauts’ nutrition to combat problems like calcium loss from bones and muscle breakdown in extended space.

Dr. Biamonte explains that Bio cybernetics runs a simulation of your entire body—including endocrine, immune, and mitochondrial function, based on your lab results. This allows it to calculate the exact nutrition and supplements needed to correct imbalances.

The Danger of Uninformed Supplementation

A key lesson Dr. Biamonte learned early on is the critical need for testing before supplementing. “If you don’t know what you’re doing, you can cause imbalances in your body… and actually make yourself worse,” he warns.

He provides a startling example:

• Vitamin C and Copper: Massive, long-term intake of Vitamin C mobilizes and draws out the body’s copper reserves (needed for the copper-based enzyme ascorbic acid oxidase), potentially causing a copper deficiency.
• Vitamin C and Calcium: Vitamin C acts as a chelator of calcium, and excessive amounts over time can leach calcium out of tissues, including bone.

“You’ve got to know what your existing balance is,” Dr. Biamonte stresses.

Candida: The Hidden Saboteur

Dr. Biamonte discovered that a significant portion of his patients (around 25%) had “bizarre reactions” to supplements, seeming to have the opposite effect than expected. He eventually traced this back to a common thread: Candida overgrowth.

He reveals key insights into Candida’s behavior:

• Candida Feeders: Certain nutrients actually feed Candida and make it spread, including Vitamin D, Coenzyme Q10, B Complex, copper, and iron.
• Medication Clues: Anti-fungal drugs like Nystatin and Ketoconazole work by blocking Candida’s ability to absorb iron and Vitamin D, respectively, underscoring this relationship.
• Iatrogenic Cause: Candida is often “Doctor induced” or medication induced. Indiscriminate use of broad-spectrum antibiotics, antacids, steroids, and certain estrogenic and psychotropic medications can cause Candida overgrowth by disrupting intestinal flora or creating favorable growth conditions.
• The Decomposer: Dr. Biamonte notes that Candida’s main use in nature is decomposition. He states that embalming fluid is essentially a strong antifungal designed to destroy the Candida that would naturally decompose a body after death.

Dr. Biamonte noticed a relapse in Candida symptoms among patients who had been successfully treated years prior. The common factor was the spike protein—either from the COVID-19 vaccine or the virus itself.

He cites a Japanese study showing the spike protein destroys bifidus bacteria in the colon, a mechanism that leads to Candida overgrowth, similar to antibiotics.

The Challenge of Testing and Diagnosis

Candida can produce up to 150 different symptoms, making it easily overlooked. Dr. Biamonte observes that symptoms often flare up after eating sugar/carbs or when humidity and temperature are high.

He gives surprising examples of Candida-related symptoms:

• Arthritis: Mycotoxins from Candida cause inflammation that can lead to arthritic symptoms.
• Chemical Intolerance: Leaky gut syndrome, caused by Candida roots breaking into blood vessels for sugar, leads to universal chemical intolerance.
• Migraines: Exposure to external mold toxins (e.g., in a water-damaged house) can trigger severe migraines in a person already overloaded by internal Candida mycotoxins.

Crucially, Dr. Biamonte explains that Candida is difficult to culture in stool tests because it grows in a “spotty, splotchy manner” in the intestines, easily missing the sample.

Hidden Markers of Candida on Stool Tests

Dr. Biamonte has identified patterns on modern stool tests (like Gi map or Gi effects) that strongly indicate Candida, even when it doesn’t show up directly:

• High Intestinal pH: Candida proliferates above a pH of 7.2. Typical patients have a pH of 7.5 or higher.
• Butyrate Deficiency: Butyric acid is the intestinal tract’s natural antifungal; a deficiency allows Candida to grow.
• Elevated Calprotectin: This indicates an immune and inflammatory response.
• Missing Commensal Flora: A lack of friendly E. coli, Lactobacillus Acidophilus, or Bifidus is a major sign.

He recommends that individuals concerned about Candida get a modern stool test from cutting-edge labs (like Genova or Doctors Data) or an Organic Acid Test, which looks for elevated markers like Arabinol.

The 5-Phase Protocol for Permanent Candida Elimination

Dr. Biamonte stresses that the incorrect, single-treatment approach is why Candida relapses. He learned that Candida is highly mutative and can become drug-resistive if exposed to the same medication or botanical for 21 days or longer.
His successful strategy, outlined in his book The Candida Chronicles, follows a strict 5-phase structure:

• Phase 0: Bowel Cleanse—To remove parasites and surface dysbiosis.
• Phase 1: Systemic Kill—Using a rotated schedule of botanicals to kill Candida throughout the body (he uses a 4-day rotation).
• Phase 2: Deep Gut Kill & Probiotic Replenishment—Focuses on killing the deep-seated Candida in the gut. Dr. Biamonte found that probiotics won’t “stick” until the Candida load is reduced, or they will be “unseeded” by the Candida. You must reduce the Candida first.
• Phase 3: Toxicity & Deficiency Correction—Assessing and detoxing heavy metals (like copper, iron, mercury, arsenic) and correcting key deficiencies (like zinc, selenium, molybdenum).
• Phase 4: Immune System Repair—Rebuilding the body’s long-term defense against recurrence.

The intensity of each phase is adjusted based on the patient’s severity and lab work. For a moderate case, Dr. Biamonte estimates a treatment time of about a year and a half.