A Rheumatologist’s Unexpected Method for Switching Off Joint Pain During Menopause and Losing Weight in the Process

One woman told me recently:

“My doctor just kept increasing the dose. Nobody ever asked why my joints were getting worse. They just gave me something stronger.”

That’s what got me started on this story.

I reached out to Dr. Sandra Holt — a rheumatologist with 22 years of experience specialising in age-related joint conditions. She didn’t say what I expected.

“The research has been there for years,” she told me. “What’s been missing is someone connecting it directly to what women over 60 are actually experiencing in their joints.”

The practice itself is thousands of years old and the science behind it is serious enough that institutions like Harvard have spent $10 million studying it. ²

Science shows people have more control over their joint health than they’ve been led to believe

In 2016, Japanese cell biologist Yoshinori Ohsumi won a Nobel prize for his research on autophagy – a process of cells literally renewing themselves.

This process is primarily activated by fasting, periods of non-eating that can last anywhere between 16 to 72 hours.

This cell rejuvenation process is what gives joints the ability to become better through the following mechanisms.

#1 It reduces body inflammation

Fasting reduces inflammation at the source – and for many, that makes all the difference. In clinical observations, 36% of patients improved enough to stop pain medication altogether. ^{3 4 5}

#2 It slows cartilage breakdown and helps rebuild it. 

Fasting triggers autophagy-driven cell regeneration, which clears out damaged cartilage cells and makes room for healthier ones. ⁶

In other words, fasting activates your body’s own repair system

The problem with just “managing the pain” with meds

Most doctors reach for nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) – ibuprofen, diclofenac, naproxen – as the default answer to joint pain. 

They work in the short term but the long-term picture is considerably darker.

One study found that long-term NSAID users were twice as likely to experience worsening pain and disability, and three times more likely to eventually need a total knee replacement. ⁷

Meanwhile, every NSAID except aspirin raises the risk of heart attack, stroke, and heart failure and that risk increases the longer you take them. ⁸

In other words: the standard treatment numbs the symptom while creating a bunch of other problems.

It’s important to note that adults over 60 are even at the higher risk of various diseases due to their age. ⁹

Fasting can switch off joint inflammation but there’s a catch most people miss

Despite all the amazing research, fasting does have one negative.

Done wrong, it can spike cortisol, making joint pain worse.

That’s why so many women try it, feel nothing, and conclude it doesn’t work for them.

To actually make fasting work it needs to be tailored to your specific circumstances.

To your body and lifestyle.

Dr. Holt has reviewed this specific protocol that has a 90% satisfaction rate among her patients

Dr. Holt was asked to review a novel fasting protocol built around personalisation.

She reviewed the science, ran it through her own patient base, and tested the results firsthand.

Now she recommends it directly from her practice.

“The results have been consistent,” she says.

“90% of patients who followed it reported excellent improvement in joint pain and mobility.

Most of them also lost weight which is a nice bonus.”

Importantly, the protocol requires no strenuous exercise – a deliberate design choice for people whose joint pain already limits their movement.

It only works if it’s built for you

Before you start, the protocol has you take a short assessment. It’s there for two reasons:

#1 It analyses your profile to build a fasting structure specific to your biology.

#2 Completing it unlocks a private reader discount only available through this link.

The assessment takes two minutes. The results last a lot longer than that.