Gut Beauty Counsellor® Tawa Rika on Taking Better Care of Your Bowels

Gut Beauty Counsellor® Tawa Rika runs her own gut health and beauty site Inner Care Lab as well as helping people improve their gut health through seminars and one-on-one counselling. What awakened her to the gut-beauty connection, she says, was her own personal experience.

Gut health regimens have become something of a craze in recent years, but Rika feels they’re not always as effective as they’re made out to be.

She shared with us her insights on gut health based on her own experiences.

Past struggles with constipation: just three bowel movements a month

One is immediately struck by Tawa Rika’s flawless skin and slender figure. But she says she used to suffer from severe constipation.

“From the time I was in elementary school, I would have a bowel movement once every week to ten days. That was so normal that I thought it was just the way my body worked. But then I met Dr. Fujita Koichiro, the leading expert on gut science, and he told me, ‘Ms. Tawa, that’s not normal.’ [Grins self-mockingly.] Then I tried Dr. Fujita’s probiotic gut health program, and that sure relieved my constipation.”

She describes the changes that resulted.

“When I was constipated, nothing I tried to lose weight worked, but once I became regular, I found it easy to lose weight. What’s more, my skin woes disappeared. Mentally, too, I felt a lot more at ease. After all, the brain and the gut are intimately connected, according to Dr. Fujita. It’s called the gut-brain axis.

“Serotonin, which is known as the feel-good hormone, is produced in the gut, not the brain. Then it’s carried from there to the brain, where it has a calming effect on the mind. That’s why the gut is called the second brain. Curing my constipation had other physical and mental benefits as well. It made my skin more attractive thanks to the vitamins produced. It also strengthened my immune system. And I could tell it was all because my gut was now in good working order.”

Rika has been in the healthcare business for twenty years, and her own experience has made her keenly aware of the importance of the gut. That’s what led to her present career as a Gut Beauty Counsellor®.

The importance of the right approach to gut health

More and more people these days are following gut health regimens. But “few people truly take the right approach to gut health,” Rika observes.

Improving gut health is generally seen as a matter of getting enough fermented foods and fiber in your diet. According to Rika, though, “that’s not sufficient on its own.” She explains why.

“No doubt you’ve heard the term intestinal flora. But surprisingly, a lot of people couldn’t tell you what they are. Well, intestinal flora are the key to gut health.

“Intestinal flora are the bacteria living in the intestine. When you look at the intestine through a microscope, it looks like a flower garden, hence the name. When I say ‘bacteria,’ maybe the first thing that occurs to you is, ‘Hey, better kill them germs.’ But in fact it’s important to have a large variety of bacteria in your intestinal flora. Only then will the fermented foods you’ve consumed ferment in your belly, keeping your gut in good working order.”

Rika made the relationship between intestinal flora and fermented foods easier to understand with a botanical comparison.

“Plants bear abundant leaves and flowers because they have strong roots and grow in fertile soil, right? The relationship between intestinal flora and fermented foods is the same. Fermented foods are like the leaves and branches. To bear beautiful flowers, they need to have the right soil, or intestinal flora.

“Of course, just eating fermented foods isn’t entirely devoid of benefits on its own. But whether or not your gut has a well-balanced intestinal flora makes a huge difference.”

The secret to developing a well-balanced intestinal flora?

So what can you do to develop a well-balanced intestinal flora?

“Some 200 types of bacteria are said to inhabit the gut, and they should ideally be well balanced. A diet skewed to foods only containing a certain type of bacteria, such as natto or yogurt, upsets the intestinal flora balance and does nothing to improve the intestinal environment. You should try to ingest a wide variety of bacteria.”

But there’s something even more fundamental to keep in mind. “You could be killing off your intestinal flora yourself in the course of your daily routine,” Rika warns.

“There are things that kill off intestinal flora when absorbed by the body: for example. additives and preservatives contained in instant foods or those bento lunches they sell at the convenience store; antibiotics contained in the medications you take; or sanitizers, disinfectant wipes, and antibacterial products. It’s therefore important to avoid ingesting such chemicals as much as humanly possible, even if you can’t eliminate them completely.

“Rethinking these lifestyle choices is the first step to a healthy gut. Eating fermented foods is the next step.”

The ultimate recipe for developing a well-balanced intestinal flora!

Rika then shared one of her recipes for nurturing intestinal flora.

“A good dish for developing a healthy gut is cabbage in vinegar. Consisting of cabbage soaked in vinegar, it was originally thought up by Dr. Fujita. Today I’m going to demonstrate how to make a variation on this, hot cabbage in vinegar, which is easier to eat. It’s my own original recipe.”

【Probiotic gut health recipe】 Hot Cabbage in Vinegar, a Tawa Rika original

“Cabbage contains dietary fiber, and zapping it in the microwave makes it go down easier. What’s more, cider vinegar contains acetobacter, also known as the weight-loss bacteria. According to Dr. Fujita, acetobacter offers a host of benefits. It produces short-chain fatty acids in the gut, making it easier to lose weight. It also ensures the proper working of the gut’s barrier function.”

Rika eats hot cabbage in vinegar every day, varying it by adding salted kelp, tuna, or corn.

“You can keep it in the fridge, but it goes down so smoothly that in my house there’s never any left over anyway, even when I make half a head of cabbage worth [laughs]. It may be a hassle to make at first, but eventually you’ll find your gut can’t do without it.
“I urge you to eat this dish regularly. It cured my constipation.”