Ask Tufts Experts

I’ve heard about a new cooking oil called Enova that can help you lose weight. How does it work?

Enova has a slightly different chemical makeup from regular cooking oil. Recent attention to Enova oil was prompted by some studies that showed it could aid in a weight-loss effort. In one, people who used the new oil lost 3 more pounds over a 6-month period than people who used traditional cooking oil. In another, people who used Enova oil had an 8 percent increase in oxidation of fat.

The price for those modest differences, which have yet to be corroborated by other research, is high. Enova oil, currently being test-marketed in Atlanta and Chicago, costs about as much as olive oil—between $4 and $5 per 20-ounce bottle.

I’ve been told you can have a mini-stroke and not even know it. Is that true?

Yes. The symptoms of a mini-stroke, also known as a transient ischemic attack, or TIA, last only a few minutes. They’re also milder than the symptoms of a full-blown stroke, although similar in nature. They include numbness or weakness, especially on one side of the body; vision problems; confusion; dizziness; or loss of balance/coordination.

Tufts heart disease researcher Ernst Schaefer, MD, likens a TIA to “angina of the brain.” With angina, a temporarily cut-off blood supply to the heart causes chest pain or shortness of breath. With TIAs, a cut-off blood supply to the brain causes the symptoms mentioned above. Both should trigger a doctor’s visit.