diff --git a/src/components/insights/insights-layout-shell.tsx b/src/components/insights/insights-layout-shell.tsx
index c4e34fa26..c5ad3679d 100644
--- a/src/components/insights/insights-layout-shell.tsx
+++ b/src/components/insights/insights-layout-shell.tsx
@@ -106,20 +106,15 @@ export function InsightsLayoutShell({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) {
   // dashboard tile so navigation between surfaces is a free cache hit.
   const workoutsProbe = useWorkouts({ limit: 1 });
 
-  // v1.29 — nutrients-presence gate. The nutrients pill gates on at
-  // least one `NutrientIntakeDay` row in a 1-day probe window (any
-  // nutrient, any source). Enabled only when the opt-in module is on —
-  // the route 403s "module.disabled" otherwise, so probing while off
-  // would just burn a request every mount.
+  // v1.29 — nutrients gate. `nutrients` is opt-in (default off), unlike
+  // the always-on metric clusters, so the pill's floor is the module
+  // toggle alone — not a data-presence probe. Gating on BOTH the toggle
+  // AND a first row was a catch-22: the in-context enable CTA lives on
+  // `/insights/nutrients` itself, and that page was only reachable once
+  // data already existed. A user who just flipped the module on (or
+  // wants to) can now always reach the page; the page itself still
+  // degrades from "enable" → "no rows yet" → the three-card spine.
   const nutrientsEnabled = user?.modules?.nutrients === true;
-  const nutrientsProbe = useQuery({
-    queryKey: queryKeys.nutrientIntake(1),
-    queryFn: () =>
-      apiGet<{ nutrients: Array<{ nutrient: string }> }>(
-        "/api/nutrients?days=1",
-      ),
-    enabled: isAuthenticated && nutrientsEnabled,
-  });
 
   // v1.4.31 — memoise the `availability` prop so an unchanged
   // payload doesn't recreate the object on every cache-write of
@@ -132,7 +127,7 @@ export function InsightsLayoutShell({ children }: { children: ReactNode }) {
   const hasMood = (comprehensiveQuery.data?.moodSummary?.count ?? 0) > 0;
   const hasMedication = (comprehensiveQuery.data?.medications?.length ?? 0) > 0;
   const hasWorkouts = (workoutsProbe.data?.workouts.length ?? 0) > 0;
-  const hasNutrients = (nutrientsProbe.data?.nutrients.length ?? 0) > 0;
+  const hasNutrients = nutrientsEnabled;
   const availability: InsightInputs | undefined = useMemo(() => {
     if (!isAuthenticated) return undefined;
     return { summaries, hasMood, hasMedication, hasWorkouts, hasNutrients };
diff --git a/src/components/insights/insights-tab-strip.tsx b/src/components/insights/insights-tab-strip.tsx
index 34339ce0b..d2fd0060b 100644
--- a/src/components/insights/insights-tab-strip.tsx
+++ b/src/components/insights/insights-tab-strip.tsx
@@ -366,8 +366,10 @@ const SUB_PAGE_MODULE: Partial<Record<SubPageSlug, ModuleKey>> = {
   "breathing-disturbances": "sleep",
   "blood-glucose": "glucose",
   workouts: "workouts",
-  // v1.29 — the nutrients pill gates on the opt-in `nutrients` module on
-  // top of the `hasNutrients` data floor.
+  // v1.29 — the nutrients pill gates on the opt-in `nutrients` module
+  // alone; there is no data floor on top (see `hasNutrients` in
+  // `insights-layout-shell.tsx` — reachability, not row count, is the
+  // gate once the user has opted in).
   nutrients: "nutrients",
 };
 
diff --git a/src/lib/insights/metric-availability.ts b/src/lib/insights/metric-availability.ts
index 434655e91..74e790e44 100644
--- a/src/lib/insights/metric-availability.ts
+++ b/src/lib/insights/metric-availability.ts
@@ -123,7 +123,8 @@ export type InsightMetric =
   // v1.29 — nutrient intake (hydration + micronutrients). Event/store
   // driven (`NutrientIntakeDay`, not a `Measurement` series) like
   // `MOOD` / `MEDICATION` / `WORKOUTS`, so it reads the boolean
-  // `hasNutrients` flag rather than a `summaries[…].count`.
+  // `hasNutrients` flag rather than a `summaries[…].count` — and unlike
+  // those, the flag tracks the opt-in module toggle, not row presence.
   | "NUTRIENTS";
 
 /**
@@ -147,10 +148,13 @@ export interface InsightInputs {
    */
   hasWorkouts?: boolean;
   /**
-   * v1.29 — whether the user has at least one `NutrientIntakeDay` row in
-   * the probe window (any nutrient, any source). Drives the nutrients
-   * pill. Optional so legacy mounts keep type-checking; the helper
-   * treats `undefined` as "not available".
+   * v1.29 — whether the opt-in `nutrients` module is on. Drives the
+   * nutrients pill directly (no row-count floor on top): the module is
+   * a deliberate user choice, and the in-context enable CTA lives on
+   * `/insights/nutrients` itself, so the pill must stay reachable the
+   * moment the module is on even with zero rows recorded yet. Optional
+   * so legacy mounts keep type-checking; the helper treats `undefined`
+   * as "not available".
    */
   hasNutrients?: boolean;
 }
diff --git a/src/lib/insights/sub-page-metric.ts b/src/lib/insights/sub-page-metric.ts
index 16180fd6a..bbe2bc391 100644
--- a/src/lib/insights/sub-page-metric.ts
+++ b/src/lib/insights/sub-page-metric.ts
@@ -138,8 +138,8 @@ const SUB_PAGE_METRIC = {
   // v1.29 — nutrient intake (hydration + micronutrients). Backed by
   // `NutrientIntakeDay`, not a `Measurement` series, so the metric list
   // stays empty like `medications` / `workouts`; the tab-strip pill gates
-  // on `hasNutrients` (threaded from a lightweight probe read) instead of
-  // a `summaries[…].count`.
+  // on `hasNutrients`, which tracks the opt-in module toggle rather than
+  // a `summaries[…].count` or a row-presence probe.
   nutrients: [],
 } as const satisfies Record<string, readonly string[]>;