Weight Loss Challenge - Brought to you by the FTC

You've seen the products to help you lose weight - fat blasters, calorie zappers, powerful powders, potions, pills, and creams. But not all of them work. Can you tell the weight loss fact from fiction? Take this quick Weight Loss Challenge - brought to you by the Federal Trade Commission, the nation's consumer protection agency - and get the skinny on safe and effective weight loss. Este Cuestionario esta disponible tambien en español
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Your sister's wedding is in two weeks. The bridal brunches and bachelorette bashes were showing at your last dress fitting and you need to take off 10 pounds fast. What's your best strategy?

  1. Invest in super-hold foundation garments.
  2. Pare the portions and get into gear. With effort, you might be able to lose a few pounds in a healthy way before the big day.
  3. There's a pill for that – lose the weight without stressing about the gym or starving yourself.

Correct answer is #2

On the nose! Don't listen to anyone who says you can lose two pounds a week or more without dieting and exercising. Take a pass on any product that promises results without any changes. The only thing you'll lose is money.

Doctors, dieticians, and other experts agree that the best way to lose weight is to eat fewer calories and be more active.

  1. True
  2. False

Correct answer is #1

For most people, losing about a pound a week is reasonable. That translates to cutting about 500 calories a day from your diet, eating a variety of nutritious foods and exercising regularly. Learn more at Nutrition.gov, ChooseMyPlate.gov or the Weight-control Information Network.

Want to go down three sizes? With the Fat-Foe pill, you'll drop more than 5 pounds a week. The all natural, bio-active compound is so effective, you can eat what you want and still lose 25 pounds this month.

  1. True
  2. False

Correct answer is #2

Yes. Anyone who says you can lose two or more pounds a week without dieting and exercise is lying, plain and simple. Medical experts say making healthy food choices and increasing exercise are necessary to lose weight.

I tend to gain weight through my middle and hips. I've heard that Brindall berries reduce fat absorption by 76%. I could lose 4 pounds a week for months.

  1. Bring on the Brindalls – I need a fat sponge!
  2. Reducing fat absorption sounds just as good as dieting, and a lot easier.
  3. Bury the berries and work on a sensible plan for moving more and eating healthier meals that work for you.

Correct answer is #3

Yes. Anyone who says you can lose two or more pounds a week without dieting and exercise is lying. No fat-blocker can absorb enough fat or calories to cause lots of permanent weight loss. Even legitimate fat blockers – and there are some – must be used with a reduced-calorie diet to work.

Eat what you want! The more you eat, the more you lose with a breakthrough product – acupuncture earrings. They work for everyone.

  1. Accessorize my excess? I don't think so.
  2. Sign me up – sounds like a dream come true.
  3. Better health through jewelry. Now that's a plan.

Correct answer is #1

Yes! It's impossible to eat unlimited amounts of food – any food – and still lose weight. Losing weight requires sensible food choices. And a claim that you can lose even one pound a week by wearing earrings? Also impossible.

Who needs the hassle of watching every little morsel, or waiting months to see real results? I want to try that syrup you drink with seltzer to burn fat. I could lose tons of weight right away.

  1. Burn, baby, burn!
  2. Just remember to drink the syrup before meals.
  3. No sirree to the syrup.

Correct answer is #3

You got it! No pill, powder, syrup or other product can make you lose weight and keep it off without eating fewer calories and getting more active. No one product causes substantial weight loss for everyone who uses it.

The ad says if you take their pill an hour before meal time you can eat as much as you want of all the foods you love and the pounds will melt away. I say: No way!

  1. True
  2. False

Correct answer is #1

You're paying attention! Doctors, dieticians, and other experts agree there's no magic way to lose weight without dieting or exercising. Even pills approved by FDA to block the absorption of fat or help you eat less must be taken with a low-calorie, low-fat diet and regular exercise.

Dr. Cal Killer's new formula for living allows anyone to eat cheeseburgers, ice cream and foods forbidden by other plans. Our secret is Mulletwood reduction, which helps burn calories before they're trapped as fat.

  1. Save all those little calories before they're trapped!
  2. Sounds like a formula to burn your money.
  3. We all scream for ice cream.

Correct answer is #2

You nailed it! Don't spend money on any product that claims you can eat all the food you want and still lose weight. The only thing you'll lose is money. Making healthy food choices and increasing exercise are key to losing weight.

Take it off and keep it off! Lose weight permanently with apple pectin-enhanced cream. Rub this amazing product on your wrists and other pressure points to activate your body's thermal fat-burning power, and never diet again.

  1. If a cream is powerful enough, I can keep the weight off for good, even after I stop using it.
  2. An apple a day keeps the pounds away.
  3. This idea rubs me the wrong way!

Correct answer is #3

Gold star! Don't trust any product that promises once-and-for-all results without permanent lifestyle changes. And a claim that you can lose even one pound a week by rubbing on a cream is false. It's also false for weight loss patches, body wraps, rings, earrings, body belts, shoe inserts and special clothing, too.

Want to drop 20 pounds fast? Concentrated extract of herring has a super fat-fighting formula that surrounds excess calories, forever preventing them from forming body fat.

  1. That should go swimmingly!
  2. Am I “herring” you correctly? That sounds fishy.
  3. Fighting fat is where it's at.

Correct answer is #2

You're right. No fat-blocker can block or absorb enough fat or calories to cause lots of weight loss. Even legitimate fat blockers must be used with a reduced-calorie diet to work.

Enjoy your favorite foods and still slim down forever. This new powder contains compounds that prevent fat, sugars and starches from turning into extra weight by blocking their absorption in the intestine.

  1. True
  2. False

Correct answer is #2

That's right. No fat blocker can block enough fat or calories to make you lose substantial amounts of weight. It's impossible to eat unlimited amounts of food – any food – and still lose weight.

End the cycle of losing and gaining. You can lose the weight forever without harsh regimes or deprivation – and with the right help. Products with the active ingredient auberginium will bind with food to block the digestion of fat and carbs.

  1. True
  2. False

Correct answer is #2

You called it! Don't trust any product that promises permanent weight loss without permanent lifestyle changes. Even legitimate fat blockers must be used with a reduced-calorie diet to work.

With our patented herbal body wraps, success is guaranteed. The proof is in our study – where everyone lost more than two pounds a day without starving or hitting the gym.

  1. Wrap it up, I'll take it.
  2. Sounds better than the bubble wrap program.
  3. Whoa, this gives fitness a "bad wrap!"

Correct answer is #3

That's right! There's nothing you can wear or apply to your skin that will cause you to lose weight permanently, whether it's a patch, cream, clothes, jewelry or shoe inserts. Losing weight at the rate of a pound or two a week through changes to diet and exercise is the most effective way to take it off and keep it off.

Abdominal belts can melt the pounds away. They work best with fortified creams to slow fat absorption.

  1. False
  2. True

Correct answer is #1

You're abs-olutely right! There's nothing you can wear or apply to your skin that will cause weight loss. Nor will special clothes, jewelry, shoes and lotions.

I'm a yo-yo dieter. Have been for years. Now I'm dying to try the new weight loss patch. I've heard you just can't fail.

  1. Weight loss patch? Rip off that rip-off.
  2. It's like a nicotine patch and will curb your cravings.
  3. Just slap it on and the pounds melt away.

Correct answer is #1

You got it. No patch, cream, clothes, jewelry or shoe inserts will cause you to lose substantial weight. Work with your health care provider on a nutrition and exercise program suited to your lifestyle and metabolism.

Ramp up your digestive system! Wearing these massage insoles can help you blast away fat as you digest. Lose 20 pounds this month without cutting back.

  1. Sounds like a “shoe”-in.
  2. Give this one the boot!
  3. All my favorite foods? That is a blast!

Correct answer is #2

You kicked it to the curb! Any claim that you can lose even one pound a week by using special insoles – or creams, lotions, patches, body wraps, rings, earrings, body belts or clothing – is false.

Reports on a news site said that ACE AH-SIGH-EE powder is an amazing weight loss breakthrough. The reporter said she lost 20 lbs in two weeks by using it. The news site pointed me to an online seller of ACE AH-SIGH-EE who says I can get my money back if I'm not satisfied, no strings-attached. What's to lose, except some pounds?

  1. Put the brakes on that “breakthrough.” You're not getting the whole story.
  2. If it's on the news, it must be legit, right?
  3. Even if they're stretching the truth, you could still get your money back.

Correct answer is #1

You got the scoop. That may not be a real news site. Scammers exploit people's trust by using the logos of well-known news organizations to set up fake news sites to peddle their wares. As a rule, legitimate news organizations do not endorse products. And, even if the seller's money-back guarantee is legitimate, it's no substitute for scientific evidence that a product is safe or effective.

This advanced Electro-stim muscle enhancer is a fast, no-sweat and effortless workout. By sending electric currents to your muscles, it fixes your problem areas in a jiffy!

  1. Sounds shockingly easy.
  2. Pull the plug on that!
  3. No-sweat – that's my kind of workout.

Correct answer is #2

Good work! Electronic muscle stimulators may be able to strengthen, tone or firm a muscle temporarily – but not permanently. They're usually meant for use in physical therapy or rehabilitation under the supervision of a licensed health care professional.

Downsize your dress size with just one little pill. Our 100% natural NoBellyFat tablets contain extract of lobelia tea, a safe and gentle way to boost your body's ability to lose weight.

  1. No “tea-sing” – this sounds shady.
  2. It's natural so it must be safe.
  3. Tea time!

Correct answer is #1

You're safe-tea minded! FDA has discovered hundreds of dietary supplements containing drugs or other chemicals, often in products for weight loss and bodybuilding. They could cause serious side effects or interact in dangerous ways with prescription medicine or other supplements you're taking.

Why let a fussy diet ruin your day? Wear the Ab-Anaconda to squeeze the fat cells as you're digesting your food. Let the belt do all the work.

  1. “Ab-solutely”.
  2. Let's tie one on.
  3. Ab-Anaconda is today's snake oil.

Correct answer is #3

You caught the snake in the grass! No belt, patches, shoes, clothing, jewelry or creams can melt away the pounds. Anyone who says you can lose two or more pounds a week without dieting and exercising is wrong.
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