Nutrition Company Launched To Help Fight Chronic Illness

21 Dec 2016 --- An Edinburgh nutritionist and fitness expert has used her chronic irritable bowel syndrome to inspire her new business, which aims to bring good nutrition and exercise to people’s busy lives. Lorraine Cunningham launched her new company – Nutritious Lolly – to offer easy-to-follow actionable nutrition advice that fits around busy lifestyles.

The new company only came about after years of struggling with her own acute irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), which Lorraine says she developed in her late twenties due to a stressful middle management role in a corporate environment lead to

The condition was so debilitating it became clear that she would have to make changes in her life to improve her health.

“I had a really stressful role in my previous career and slowly but surely it started to get to the point that it was making me incredibly unwell,” said Lorraine.

“IBS is an acute illness and very quickly it can have a profound effect on your life. The shocking thing is that one in five people in the UK will suffer from it at some stage in their lives yet most people don’t like to talk about it, probably because of embarrassment.”

“The traditional ways used to treat IBS didn’t really work for me and, from my own research, I discovered quite quickly just how incredibly important good nutrition is, in not only improving conditions like IBS, but in maintaining your general health.”

IBS and its related symptoms cost the British NHS £1.2 billion ($1.48 billion) in 2012-2013. Poor diet and stress are often cited as the main causes. The condition is most common in women aged between 20 and 30 although it can strike anyone at any time.

“I always tell people that your digestive system is sort of like the powerhouse of your body and if you don’t look after it, your health is going to suffer in all sorts of ways,” said Lorraine.

“That’s why good, easy-to-follow nutrition is the foundation for the Nutritious Lolly 6-Week Whole-Body Plan.”

Lorraine has helped hundreds of people with health and nutrition over the years, including elite athletes like Scottish amateur boxing champion Iain Trotter, who has just signed his first professional contract. Iain credits Lorraine with much of his success.

“My coach and I had to trust in Lolly that my weight would be spot on for every fight. I had more energy for training, better recovery and always felt I could go an extra round,” said Trotter.

“I knew the importance of nutrition in my regime but some of the changes that Lolly made to my diet have made a huge difference.”

Known to her friends as Lolly, hence the company name, she has been working on the new brand with web developers, marketing and social media experts and business advisers over the last year and plans to launch the new venture officially on January 9th. She said she is both excited and nervous about the launch.

“In some ways, the actual nutrition and fitness part of the business is really the easy part.”

“The thing that’s really taken the time is all the business-related matters. I’ve spent a long time ensuring that I have the proposition right, and that the branding and marketing is where it should be.”

“I’ve been working with some very talented people and it’s both exciting and nerve-racking to finally be at the stage where we’re ready to launch.”

The Nutritious Lolly 6-Week Whole-Body Plan is an online course that incorporates weekly fitness videos and easy-to-follow recipes. The central point to Lolly’s new plan – which launches in January – is that good nutrition leads to healthy digestion, which is central for a healthy lifestyle, something that Lolly says many people forget.