diff --git a/frontend/lib/backendRequest.ts b/frontend/lib/backendRequest.ts
index 2bc9310..1827e4d 100644
--- a/frontend/lib/backendRequest.ts
+++ b/frontend/lib/backendRequest.ts
@@ -140,6 +140,53 @@ async function discardResponseBody(response: Response) {
   }
 }
 
+function mountBackendWakeDocument(backendBaseUrl: string): () => void {
+  const noop = () => {};
+  if (
+    typeof document === "undefined" ||
+    typeof window === "undefined" ||
+    !document.body
+  ) {
+    return noop;
+  }
+
+  let backend: URL;
+  try {
+    backend = new URL(backendBaseUrl);
+  } catch {
+    return noop;
+  }
+  if (
+    backend.protocol !== "https:" ||
+    !backend.hostname.endsWith(".onrender.com") ||
+    backend.origin === window.location.origin ||
+    backend.username || backend.password || backend.port ||
+    backend.pathname !== "/" || backend.search || backend.hash
+  ) {
+    return noop;
+  }
+
+  // A normal browser document can wake a sleeping Render service while
+  // background fetches receive startup responses. This makes one document
+  // request, with scripts and navigation disabled. Its load event is never
+  // treated as readiness: the regular health probes must still confirm JSON.
+  const frame = document.createElement("iframe");
+  frame.hidden = true;
+  frame.tabIndex = -1;
+  frame.title = "CalorieApp startup";
+  frame.referrerPolicy = "no-referrer";
+  frame.setAttribute("aria-hidden", "true");
+  frame.setAttribute("sandbox", "");
+  frame.src = `${backend.origin}/health`;
+  try {
+    document.body.appendChild(frame);
+  } catch {
+    frame.remove();
+    return noop;
+  }
+  return () => frame.remove();
+}
+
 /**
  * Render free services can take 50 seconds or more to wake after inactivity.
  * Probe one health route until the backend returns the expected JSON response,
@@ -243,6 +290,7 @@ export async function waitForBackendReady(
   }
 
   throwIfAborted(signal);
+  const removeWakeDocument = mountBackendWakeDocument(normalizedBaseUrl);
   const directController = new AbortController();
   const sameOriginController = new AbortController();
   const abortBoth = () => {
@@ -272,6 +320,7 @@ export async function waitForBackendReady(
     throw new BackendRequestTimeoutError();
   } finally {
     abortBoth();
+    removeWakeDocument();
     signal?.removeEventListener("abort", abortBoth);
   }
 }
diff --git a/tools/tests/backend_warmup_rate_limit.test.mjs b/tools/tests/backend_warmup_rate_limit.test.mjs
index 48d0409..a8032b8 100644
--- a/tools/tests/backend_warmup_rate_limit.test.mjs
+++ b/tools/tests/backend_warmup_rate_limit.test.mjs
@@ -33,7 +33,7 @@ function response(status, retryAfter = null, contentType = "text/plain") {
 
 const healthy = () => response(200, null, "application/json");
 
-function warmupHarness(responses) {
+function warmupHarness(responses, browser = {}) {
   let now = Date.UTC(2026, 0, 1);
   const startedAt = now;
   let nextTimer = 0;
@@ -45,10 +45,12 @@ function warmupHarness(responses) {
   }
   const context = vm.createContext({
     AbortController,
+    URL,
     Date: Clock,
     module,
     exports: module.exports,
     process: { env: {} },
+    ...browser,
     setTimeout(callback, delay) {
       const id = ++nextTimer;
       timers.set(id, { at: now + delay, callback });
@@ -102,6 +104,91 @@ function warmupHarness(responses) {
   };
 }
 
+function browserDocument() {
+  const mounted = new Set();
+  const navigations = [];
+  return {
+    mounted,
+    navigations,
+    window: { location: { origin: "https://app.calorietoken.net" } },
+    document: {
+      body: {
+        appendChild(frame) {
+          mounted.add(frame);
+          navigations.push(frame);
+        },
+      },
+      createElement(tag) {
+        assert.equal(tag, "iframe");
+        return {
+          attributes: {},
+          setAttribute(name, value) { this.attributes[name] = value; },
+          remove() { mounted.delete(this); },
+        };
+      },
+    },
+  };
+}
+
+test("a document request wakes a backend that background fetches cannot wake", async () => {
+  const browser = browserDocument();
+  const harness = warmupHarness(() =>
+    browser.navigations.length && harness.elapsed() >= 45_000
+      ? healthy()
+      : response(429, "0"), browser);
+  await harness.settle(harness.start(undefined, 180_000, "https://backend.onrender.com"));
+  assert.equal(browser.navigations.length, 1);
+  assert.equal(browser.navigations[0].src, "https://backend.onrender.com/health");
+  assert.equal(browser.navigations[0].attributes.sandbox, "");
+  assert.equal(browser.navigations[0].referrerPolicy, "no-referrer");
+  assert.equal(browser.navigations[0].hidden, true);
+  assert.equal(browser.mounted.size, 0);
+  assert.equal(harness.elapsed(), 60_000);
+});
+
+test("a document load alone never counts as a healthy backend", async () => {
+  const browser = browserDocument();
+  const harness = warmupHarness(() => response(429, "0"), browser);
+  await assert.rejects(
+    harness.settle(harness.start(undefined, 180_000, "https://backend.onrender.com")),
+    { name: "BackendRequestTimeoutError" }
+  );
+  assert.equal(browser.navigations.length, 1);
+  assert.equal(browser.mounted.size, 0);
+  assert.equal(harness.pendingTimers(), 0);
+});
+
+test("cancelling startup removes its document and all retry timers", async () => {
+  const browser = browserDocument();
+  const harness = warmupHarness(() => response(429, "120"), browser);
+  const controller = new AbortController();
+  harness.abortAfter(controller, 5_000);
+  await assert.rejects(
+    harness.settle(harness.start(controller.signal, 180_000, "https://backend.onrender.com")),
+    /Login cancelled/
+  );
+  assert.equal(browser.navigations.length, 1);
+  assert.equal(browser.mounted.size, 0);
+  assert.equal(harness.pendingTimers(), 0);
+});
+
+for (const baseUrl of [
+  "/api/backend",
+  "http://backend.onrender.com",
+  "https://unrelated.example",
+  "https://backend.onrender.com.unrelated.example",
+  "https://user:password@backend.onrender.com",
+  "https://backend.onrender.com/path",
+  "https://backend.onrender.com/?query=private",
+]) {
+  test(`no startup document is opened for ${baseUrl}`, async () => {
+    const browser = browserDocument();
+    const harness = warmupHarness(() => healthy(), browser);
+    await harness.settle(harness.start(undefined, 180_000, baseUrl));
+    assert.equal(browser.navigations.length, 0);
+  });
+}
+
 test("ready backend proceeds immediately without credentials", async () => {
   const harness = warmupHarness([healthy()]);
   await harness.settle(harness.start());