hol+ with Dr. Taz MD | The Future of Medicine is Holistic

Fatty liver can develop without obvious symptoms. So how would you know to ask about it, and what can you do if it shows up on a test?
In this short episode, Dr. Taz explains the connection between fatty liver and metabolic health, including insulin resistance, blood sugar, muscle, and everyday habits. She also discusses clues that deserve a closer look, why mildly elevated liver enzymes should be followed up, and practical steps such as reducing sugary drinks, strength training, and walking after meals.

Fatigue or belly weight alone cannot tell you whether you have fatty liver. If you have concerns about your liver enzymes or metabolic health, talk with a qualified healthcare provider about which tests and next steps make sense for you.

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Produced by https://ClipGrowth.com (Producer: Pat Gostek)
  • (00:00) - Intro
  • (00:42) - What is Fatty Liver? Why it can go unnoticed
  • (01:56) - Fatty Liver: The metabolic health connection
  • (03:43) - What may contribute to liver fat

Creators and Guests

Host
Dr. Taz Bhatia MD
Dr. Taz Bhatia is a triple-board-certified integrative medicine physician and founder of hol+, where she brings together science, spirit and the human experience to deliver holistic, whole-person care.
Producer
Pat Gostek
Founder of ClipGrowth.com - End-to-End YouTube, Podcast & Clips Management (you just record).

What is hol+ with Dr. Taz MD | The Future of Medicine is Holistic?

hol+ with Dr. Taz MD is redefining modern medicine through a comprehensive, evidence-based holistic approach; integrating functional medicine, integrative medicine, and time-tested healing systems to treat the whole human, not just symptoms.

Hosted by Dr. Tasneem Bhatia (Dr. Taz), triple board-certified physician in integrative, functional, and holistic medicine, bestselling Penguin Random House author, and founder of hol+; a comprehensive evidence-based holistic medicine platform with clinics in Atlanta, New York City, and Los Angeles, and virtual care available nationwide.

At the heart of hol+ is a revolutionary framework: the Five Body Map- physical, mental, emotional, energetic, and social/community bodies that create whole health. This whole-human approach connects hormone imbalances, gut dysfunction, microinflammation, cortisol dysregulation, metabolic disease, autoimmune conditions, perimenopause, and stress-driven illness to the full spectrum of who we are; body, mind, and spirit.

Each episode explores Dr. Taz’s original clinical frameworks ;The Cortisol Loop, Microinflammation, and The Invisible Load alongside conversations with leading experts, celebrities, and thought leaders including Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, Katherine Schwarzenegger, Cameron Mathison, Carol Alt, Jane Seymour, Tamsen Fadal, and Kris Carr.

Topics include hormone health, gut health, GLP-1 and metabolic therapy, thyroid dysfunction, weight loss, inflammation, autoimmune disease, mental and emotional wellness, energetic health, and the future of holistic medicine.

This is the show where science and spirit converge- driving health, happiness, relationships, and family ecosystems.

Want to go deeper? Join Dr. Taz’s private community, the hol+ Circle ; medicine beyond the exam room. (holplus.co/circle)

A 2025 Webby Award honoree, recognized alongside the Mel Robbins Podcast in the 29th Annual Webby Awards, hol+ is built on the foundation of Super Woman Wellness, which surpassed 1 million downloads over 8 years.

This is medicine beyond the exam room. Welcome to hol+

[00:00:00] This episode is sponsored by Hol+ a holistic health platform built around [00:00:05] education, personalization, and integrative care. Hol+ blends [00:00:10] holistic, integrative, and functional medicine clinics with learning resources like blogs, [00:00:15] YouTube videos, and of course this podcast, so you're not just treated, you're informed.[00:00:20]
The platform also includes holistic health quizzes and a curated wellness shop, helping you [00:00:25] make choices that support your body at the root level. Hol+ is [00:00:30] holistic healthcare designed for real life. Visit us at holplus.co [00:00:35] to learn
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Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is excess fat stored [00:00:45] in liver cells, affecting an estimated one in four adults, and it's often [00:00:50] silent until it's advanced. It's driven primarily by insulin resistance [00:00:55] rather than dietary fat. Reversal centers on reducing refined [00:01:00] carbohydrates and fructose intake, building muscle, and correcting that insulin [00:01:05] sensitivity.
One in four adults has fat in their liver right [00:01:10] now, and most of them have no idea because it doesn't hurt. It shows up as [00:01:15] fatigue, stubborn belly weight, and slightly off liver enzymes that no one ever [00:01:20] follows up on. Conventionally, in Western medicine, we say mild enzyme [00:01:25] elevations are often observed rather than investigated.
We'll check it [00:01:30] next year or next time, and often they're forgotten. The advice [00:01:35] usually stops at losing weight and drinking less, which is true, but not [00:01:40] always the most actionable. There's not really a standard medication for this, so the [00:01:45] conversation tends to end very quickly. And honestly, a lot of [00:01:50] fatty liver is found by accident on a scan ordered for something else.[00:01:55]
In functional and holistic medicine, fatty liver is a metabolic [00:02:00] condition. I wanna make sure you remember that. A metabolic condition, not a [00:02:05] liver condition. Insulin resistance is the driver, not dietary [00:02:10] fat. This single point changes the entire approach. For any of you [00:02:15] with, like, PCOS, for example, polycystic ovarian syndrome, you are more prone to [00:02:20] insulin resistance.
We'll see it in our patients that are in their teens and 20s. [00:02:25] It can be present with normal enzymes in people who are not [00:02:30] overweight. But here's the good news. It's genuinely reversible, [00:02:35] especially when it's caught early. Here are some of the things that many people [00:02:40] miss when they're thinking about fatty liver.
They are chronically tired. A [00:02:45] congested liver, we get this straight from Chinese medicine 5,000 years ago, is less [00:02:50] efficient at energy metabolism. The weight around the middle that won't [00:02:55] shift is another common sign and symptom. Visceral and liver fat [00:03:00] accumulate together, and we'll actually check this in practice.
Slightly elevated liver [00:03:05] enzymes are the finding most often noticed, but often the least pursued. And that [00:03:10] dull ache under the right ribs, that's the distension of the liver capsule. It's [00:03:15] easy to dismiss it, but I would say it's maybe a slightly later sign of [00:03:20] fatty liver. Those triglycerides going up and that HDL going [00:03:25] down, that's a pattern that's easy to miss, but that's a metabolic signature that [00:03:30] usually goes together signaling fatty liver.
And then your afternoon [00:03:35] crashes and your sugar cravings, the same insulin resistance that is driving [00:03:40] the liver changes. In a root cause framework, a functional medicine framework, we wanna know [00:03:45] why the fat's there to begin with. Why is it accumulating? What's happening? Is [00:03:50] it insulin resistance, which is usually the central mechanism?
Is [00:03:55] it fructose and refined carbohydrates that are metabolized directly by the liver and [00:04:00] then quickly stored as fat? Low muscle mass, muscle is where glucose [00:04:05] is meant to go, can trigger fatty liver The gut and the liver [00:04:10] share a direct circulation, so any time the gut is off, it increases your chances [00:04:15] for fatty liver.
Chronic stress and poor sleep both make insulin [00:04:20] sensitivity worse, and of course, alcohol and certain medications will put more [00:04:25] load on the liver, impacting the liver's ability to metabolize toxins, but [00:04:30] also its chances of having fatty liver. So what do you do, and how do you [00:04:35] prevent this? Well, again, the day-to-day matters just as much as the big [00:04:40] strategic heroic moves.
Cut liquid sugar and refined [00:04:45] carbohydrates first. That's the fastest lever available. I often try to get our [00:04:50] patients to go under about four alcoholic drinks per week and keep that sugar, [00:04:55] including the refined carbohydrates, under about three teaspoons per day. Build [00:05:00] muscle. Muscle really helps, as we've seen, prevent fatty liver.
[00:05:05] Resistance training two to three times a week changes where glucose goes. [00:05:10] We wanna prioritize protein and fiber, stabilizing your blood sugar and helping [00:05:15] to reduce the load upstream. Walking after meals is such a hack, guys. [00:05:20] We have seen such tremendous changes in practice. Even 10 minutes [00:05:25] improves blood glucose control in a meaningful way.
And of course, asking [00:05:30] for the right test, a fasting insulin, a hemoglobin A1C, a triglyceride to [00:05:35] HDL ratio, and a liver ultrasound if indicated. Don't ignore [00:05:40] mildly abnormal enzymes. Ask what's being done and what you should do [00:05:45] about them. Fatty liver is one of the most reversible things I see, but only if somebody [00:05:50] tells you it's actually there.
Have you ever been told your liver enzymes were [00:05:55] slightly high, and what did you do about them? Or maybe they're high right now and you don't know where [00:06:00] to begin. To get a proper look at your own liver and metabolic markers, schedule [00:06:05] a consultation with a holplus provider who can dig into your personal health journey, [00:06:10] connect the dots, and change your story.
Go to [00:06:15] holplus.co/appointments.