Answer box: Fatty liver means extra fat has settled inside the liver. It is common, often silent, and in many people it improves with weight loss, better food and regular walking. Dr Raman Garg, a leading surgical gastroenterologist at Bombay Gastro & Cancer Institute (BGCI), Bathinda, Punjab, India, checks how much fat and scarring your liver has and plans your care.
What is fatty liver, in plain words?
Your liver is a large organ on the right side of the upper belly. It cleans the blood, makes bile for digesting fat and stores energy. In fatty liver, fat collects inside the liver cells. A little fat is normal. When fat is more than about 5 percent of the liver's weight, doctors call it fatty liver. People also say "liver mein charbi", "liver ki sujan" or "liver enlargement" when the ultrasound report shows a bright or bigger liver.
There are two main kinds. The first is linked to weight, sugar, cholesterol and a sitting life, not to alcohol. The second is linked to regular drinking. Both can quietly harm the liver over years. The good news is that the early stages often improve when the cause is dealt with. A surgical gastroenterologist is a stomach, gut, liver, gallbladder and pancreas specialist who also operates, so Dr Raman Garg can look at your liver, your gallbladder and your digestion together instead of sending you from one clinic to another.
Symptoms and when to worry
Most people with fatty liver feel fine. The problem is found by chance when an ultrasound is done for something else. When symptoms do come, they are mild and easy to ignore:
- Tiredness that does not go with rest
- A dull heaviness or discomfort on the upper right side of the belly
- Gas, bloating and a full feeling after meals
- A big belly with fat around the waist
- Dark patches on the neck or armpits, common with high sugar
Go to a hospital the same day if you see yellow eyes or skin (jaundice, called peeliya), swelling of the legs or belly (pait me pani), black or bloody vomiting, black stools, or sudden confusion and drowsiness. These can mean the liver is badly stressed. Call +91 82641-60001, our emergency care support runs 24/7. Read more on jaundice treatment in Bathinda.
Causes and risk factors
Fatty liver rarely has one cause. In Punjab, the usual mix is easy to see:
- Belly fat and weight gain, especially after 35
- Type 2 diabetes or high sugar that has not been checked for years
- High cholesterol and triglycerides
- Rich food: extra ghee, butter, fried snacks, sweets, sugary tea and cold drinks
- Very little walking, long hours on a tractor seat, in a shop or at a desk
- Regular alcohol, even if you never feel drunk
- Fast weight loss, some medicines and thyroid problems
- Family history of diabetes or liver trouble
A 45 year old shopkeeper in Rampura Phul who sits ten hours a day, takes sweet tea five times and has never tested his sugar is a typical example. His liver can be fatty well before he feels anything.
How Dr Raman Garg diagnoses fatty liver
Dr Raman Garg starts by listening. He asks about food, drinking, medicines, sugar, weight and family history, and then examines your belly. Tests are chosen to answer three questions: how much fat is there, is there any scarring (fibrosis), and is anything else harming the liver.
- Ultrasound abdomen: shows a bright, fatty liver and also checks the gallbladder, pancreas and kidneys.
- Liver function test (LFT): blood test done in our in-house laboratory. It shows if liver enzymes are raised.
- FibroScan: a quick scan that measures how stiff the liver is. Stiffness is a sign of scarring. It is arranged with trusted imaging partners in Bathinda, and Dr Raman Garg reviews the report the same day.
- CT scan abdomen: only when the ultrasound is not clear. Arranged with trusted imaging partners in Bathinda.
- Upper GI endoscopy: only when there are signs of advanced liver disease or stomach symptoms. See endoscopy in Bathinda.
| Test or visit | Starting (Rs) | Average (Rs) | Maximum (Rs) |
|---|---|---|---|
| OPD consultation | 500 | 700 | 1,000 |
| Ultrasound abdomen | 600 | 1,000 | 1,800 |
| Liver function test (LFT) | 400 | 600 | 1,200 |
| FibroScan (fatty liver stiffness) | 3,000 | 5,000 | 7,000 |
| CT scan abdomen | 3,500 | 6,000 | 9,000 |
| Upper GI endoscopy | 2,000 | 3,200 | 5,000 |
Note: These are typical Punjab costs for 2026. The final cost may vary after Dr Raman Garg examines you, depending on the number of tests needed, how far the liver is affected and your health.
Fatty liver treatment options: what actually works
There is no single tablet that clears fatty liver. People ask "which tablet is best for fatty liver?" and "is fatty liver 100 percent curable?" The honest answer is that treatment is mostly about the cause, and the early stages often improve a lot when you stay with the plan. No one can promise a result, but many patients see better reports in three to six months.
1. Weight loss, step by step
Losing 7 to 10 percent of body weight helps the liver fat go down in most people. For someone weighing 90 kg, that is about 6 to 9 kg over six months. Slow is safe. Crash diets and starving can make the liver worse.
2. Food changes that are easy to follow
- Cut sugar in tea, sweets, packed juice and cold drinks first. This matters more than cutting ghee completely.
- Keep roti to two or three, add dal, vegetables, curd and a fistful of nuts.
- Use less oil and avoid deep fried pakoras, samosas and bakery items.
- Eat fruit whole instead of juice.
- Stop alcohol if your liver is already fatty. Even small amounts slow healing.
A full food chart is in our blog on fatty liver diet and treatment.
3. Movement
Walk briskly 40 minutes a day, five days a week. Farmers and labourers who work hard in the fields often still have fatty liver because of food and sugar, so exercise helps but does not replace diet changes.
4. Treating sugar, cholesterol and thyroid
Controlling diabetes and cholesterol protects the liver. Dr Raman Garg may suggest medicines or ask you to see your physician for these. Some patients are given liver-protective medicines or vitamin E in selected cases. Do not start herbal powders or "liver tonics" from the shop on your own. Some of them harm the liver.
5. Regular follow-up
You repeat the LFT and ultrasound after about three to six months. If FibroScan shows stiffness, we watch more closely. If scarring is advanced, Dr Raman Garg plans extra tests and, when needed, guides you toward a liver transplant centre. Surgery is not a treatment for fatty liver itself. But if gallstones or hernia are found on the scan, they can be treated with keyhole surgery at the right time. See gallstone treatment in Bathinda.
Fatty liver grades in simple words
| Ultrasound grade | What it means | What usually happens |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 1 | Mild fat | Diet, walking and sugar control; repeat test in 6 months |
| Grade 2 | Moderate fat | Same plan, plus FibroScan and closer follow-up |
| Grade 3 | Heavy fat | Full evaluation, FibroScan, blood tests, tighter follow-up |
Grade is only about fat. The more important question is whether the liver has scarring, which is why FibroScan matters.
Before and after: what to expect
Preparation checklist for your first visit
- Bring old ultrasound, LFT, sugar and cholesterol reports. You can also send them on WhatsApp first.
- Write down all medicines and supplements, including herbal ones.
- Note your alcohol use honestly. Dr Raman Garg is there to help, not to judge.
- Come with an empty stomach only if blood tests or an ultrasound are planned the same day.
Typical timeline
| When | What happens |
|---|---|
| Day 1 | OPD consultation, examination, LFT and ultrasound the same day |
| Day 1 to 3 | FibroScan if needed, report reviewed by Dr Raman Garg |
| Week 1 | Written diet and exercise plan, medicines if needed |
| 3 months | Repeat LFT, weight and sugar check by phone or in OPD |
| 6 months | Repeat ultrasound or FibroScan; plan adjusted |
Risks if fatty liver is ignored
Left alone for many years, fat in the liver can cause inflammation, then scarring (fibrosis), and in a smaller group of people cirrhosis, where the liver becomes hard and shrinks. It also raises the chance of heart trouble and worsens diabetes. This is why a simple report that says "bright liver" deserves one proper visit. Early action is the cheapest and safest care.
Cost of fatty liver evaluation in Punjab
Most patients need only tests and follow-up, not an operation. The figures above show the usual tests. If gallstones or another surgical problem is found along with fatty liver, the surgery cost will be explained in advance from our gastro treatment cost in Bathinda page. OPD consultation Rs 500 to 1,000.
Note: These are typical Punjab costs for 2026. The final cost may vary after Dr Raman Garg examines you, depending on the number of tests needed, how far the liver is affected and your health.
Insurance and cashless
BGCI is empanelled with almost all major insurers and TPAs for cashless treatment, including Aditya Birla Health Insurance, Niva Bupa, Digit Insurance, Care Health Insurance, Vidal Health TPA, ICICI Lombard, Raksha TPA, Future Generali, SBI General Insurance, Oriental Insurance, Liberty General Insurance, IFFCO Tokio, Cholamandalam MS, Medi Assist TPA, and almost all other major insurers and TPAs. Ayushman Bharat: Call us with your card details and our insurance desk will tell you the same day how your card can be used.
- Share your policy or card details on WhatsApp.
- The insurance desk checks cover and arranges pre-authorisation.
- Treatment goes ahead once approval comes.
- Bills are settled directly with the insurer where cashless applies. Details are on the cashless insurance page.
Facilities at BGCI
BGCI has a modern laparoscopic operation theatre, an advanced endoscopy and colonoscopy suite, a fully equipped in-house diagnostic laboratory for LFT and other blood tests, comfortable patient rooms, 24/7 emergency care support and a cashless insurance desk. Scans such as CT and FibroScan are arranged with trusted imaging partners in Bathinda, and reports are reviewed by Dr Raman Garg the same day. One surgeon looks after you from consultation to follow-up. Out-of-town and NRI patients can take an online pre-arrival consultation by sharing reports on WhatsApp, and follow-up is possible by phone or video. See the gastro hospital in Bathinda page.
Why patients choose Dr Raman Garg
Dr Raman Garg is a Surgical Gastroenterologist and Laparoscopic Surgeon with 20+ years of experience and 10,000+ laparoscopic surgeries. He trained through MBBS at Government Medical College, Patiala, MS General Surgery at Dayanand Medical College & Hospital, Ludhiana, and DNB Surgical Gastroenterology at Lilavati Hospital and Research Centre, Mumbai, with advanced laparoscopy training in Seoul, South Korea. He is the first surgical gastroenterologist in the Malwa belt of Punjab. For fatty liver, that means one doctor who reads the scan, checks the gallbladder, explains the plan in simple words and stays with you through follow-up. Know more on Dr Raman Garg's profile.
Patients we see from your area
Patients with liver complaints come to BGCI from Rampura Phul (30 km, 40 min), Mansa (50 km, 1 hr), Goniana Mandi (12 km, 20 min) and across the Malwa belt of Punjab. Many send their reports on WhatsApp first so the first visit is shorter.
How to book
- Call or WhatsApp +91 82641-60001 (or +91 99885-03800).
- Send your ultrasound and blood reports if you have them.
- Choose a day: OPD is Monday to Saturday, 10 AM to 5 PM.
- Reach Bombay Gastro & Cancer Institute, Power House Road, Near Street No. 10, Bathinda, Punjab 151001, India.
- Email: bgcibathinda@gmail.com. Sunday is for emergencies only, with 24/7 emergency care support on +91 82641-60001.
Book online on the appointment page.
Related pages
Jaundice treatment, pancreatitis treatment, gallstone treatment, colonoscopy, gastro doctor in Bathinda, all gastro treatment. Blogs: fatty liver diet and treatment, when to see a gastro doctor.
This page is general information; your plan is set after Dr Raman Garg examines you.
Medically reviewed by Dr Raman Garg | Last updated: 8 November 2026