In 2023 I was admitted to hospital and diagnosed with decompensated ALD (Cirrhosis). It was serious.

My NHS treatment and ongoing care has been exceptional. But when I was discharged, I realised something: beyond medication and monitoring, there was little structured guidance around day-to-day living and in particularly, diet.

Later while convalescing, I began to research the weird symptoms I was experiencing. They were not uncommon and quite widely reported, my curiosity widened.

I started reading medical papers and books focused on Western diseases, prevention, and nutrition. I became interested not in trends, but in a foods structure and how macro and micronutrients function, how the body maintains balance, and how small daily inputs influence long-term outcomes.

From there, it expanded:

• Cooking equipment and techniques - how these affect nutrient preservation

• Building a digital family cookbook

• Keeping a simple journal to track symptoms, exercises, small wins (my short-term memory has declined)

What started out as researching my symptoms turned into systems thinking.

Exploring cooking equipment led me on to the materials currently used. That led me to sustainability and coming across materials I never new existed. I became aware of ideas behind The Circular Economy and Cradle to Cradle frameworks that challenge the traditional “Cradle to Grave” model of production and waste.

I realised something important, simple systems that we can apply for our own wellbeing and consideration of the environment are similar, both just need structure, balance and some long term thinking.

Aardelia grew from that realisation.