Breakdown of Wäre die Ernährung gesund, hätte sie eine positive Wirkung auf den Schlaf.
sein
to be
ein
a, an (eine)
sie
she
haben
to have
auf
on / to (down/up to a level)
gesund
healthy
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
die Ernährung
the diet
die Wirkung
the effect
positiv
positive
der Schlaf
the sleep
Questions & Answers about Wäre die Ernährung gesund, hätte sie eine positive Wirkung auf den Schlaf.
Why does the sentence start with the verb Wäre instead of a subject or Wenn?
This is a conditional clause where the word wenn (if) has been dropped. When you drop wenn in German, the conjugated verb moves to the very first position. You could also write this with the standard word order: Wenn die Ernährung gesund wäre, ...
Why does hätte come immediately after the comma?
The entire first clause (Wäre die Ernährung gesund) acts as position 1 for the main sentence. To satisfy the strict verb-second rule in German main clauses, the conjugated verb (hätte) must take position 2, placing it right after the comma.
Could I use the würde form here, like Würde die Ernährung gesund sein?
While grammatically possible, it sounds very unnatural. For highly common verbs like sein (to be) and haben (to have), German speakers strongly prefer using their genuine Konjunktiv II forms (wäre and hätte) over the würde + infinitive construction.
Why is it auf den Schlaf in the accusative case, rather than the dative?
The noun Wirkung (effect) paired with the preposition auf always requires the accusative case to show what the effect is directed towards. You can think of the effect actively extending 'onto' the sleep, which triggers the accusative.
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