Short answer
There is no hadith, and no report from the Companions, that Surah Quraish or any other surah causes weight loss. Reciting it with a dua for health is allowed as an act of hope, but it is not a sunnah. Hanafi scholars accept such practices from experience only if no one claims them as the Prophet's teaching. Weight loss still needs diet, activity and medical advice.
Reciting a surah with the intention of asking Allah for a worldly benefit is permitted, as long as it is not believed to be a sunnah or to guarantee a result. Attributing a specific benefit to the Prophet ﷺ without proof is forbidden.
The four schools agree on this.
Explanation
Surah Quraish (106) reminds the Quraysh of Allah's favour: He fed them, saving them from hunger, and made them safe, saving them from fear. Because it mentions food, some people recite it before meals hoping to eat less or feel full, and social media posts give exact methods and promise results.
None of this comes from the Quran or the Sunnah. The Prophet ﷺ warned that whoever lies about him on purpose should take his seat in the Fire, so a method should never be shared as 'sunnah' or 'from the Prophet' unless it is authentic.
In the Hanafi and wider Deobandi tradition, scholars accepted some a'mal (practices drawn from experience), such as reciting certain verses for certain needs, on two conditions: they contain nothing against the Shariah, and no one believes them to be sunnah or guaranteed. On that basis, reciting Surah Quraish and asking Allah for good health is fine. Some other scholars discourage such practices altogether, to keep worship as it was taught.
What the Sunnah does teach about eating: the Prophet ﷺ said a person fills no vessel worse than his stomach, and that a third for food, a third for drink and a third for breath is enough. Allah says eat and drink, but be not excessive (7:31). Combine that with movement and, where needed, medical advice. See also weight loss injections.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Quraish 106:1-4
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ لِإِيلَٰفِ قُرَيْشٍ ﴿١﴾ إِۦلَٰفِهِمْ رِحْلَةَ ٱلشِّتَآءِ وَٱلصَّيْفِ ﴿٢﴾ فَلْيَعْبُدُوا۟ رَبَّ هَٰذَا ٱلْبَيْتِ ﴿٣﴾ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَطْعَمَهُم مِّن جُوعٍۢ وَءَامَنَهُم مِّنْ خَوْفٍۭ ﴿٤﴾
For the accustomed security of the Quraysh - Their accustomed security [in] the caravan of winter and summer - Let them worship the Lord of this House, Who has fed them, [saving them] from hunger and made them safe, [saving them] from fear.
The surah mentions food as Allah's favour, which is why people link it to eating.
Quran, Surah Al-A'raaf 7:31
۞ يَٰبَنِىٓ ءَادَمَ خُذُوا۟ زِينَتَكُمْ عِندَ كُلِّ مَسْجِدٍۢ وَكُلُوا۟ وَٱشْرَبُوا۟ وَلَا تُسْرِفُوٓا۟ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ لَا يُحِبُّ ٱلْمُسْرِفِينَ ﴿٣١﴾
O children of Adam, take your adornment at every masjid, and eat and drink, but be not excessive. Indeed, He likes not those who commit excess.
The Quran's real teaching on eating is moderation.
Sahih al-Bukhari 110
Sahih... من كذب علي متعمدا فليتبوأ مقعده من النار ...
"Whoever lies about me deliberately, let him take his seat in the Fire."
Benefits must not be attributed to the Prophet without proof.
Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2380
Grading to be checked... ما ملأ آدمي وعاء شرا من بطن ...
"A human being fills no vessel worse than his stomach."
The Sunnah's guidance on eating less.
Where the ruling is recorded
- A'mal-e-Qurani (Ashraf Ali Thanawi), Introduction. A Deobandi collection of practices from experience, presented as permitted means and not as sunnah.
- al-Fatawa al-Hindiyya, Kitab al-Karahiyya, chapter on treatment and remedies (al-tadawi wa al-mu'alajat). Seeking a cure through recitation and lawful means is permitted.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.