Learn Hardcore Spanish (Spain): Quiero que mi dieta sea buena para la salud.

In Spanish, verbs of wanting, wishing, hoping, demanding, etc. (like querer, esperar, desear) normally trigger the present subjunctive in the subordinate clause:

Quiero que vengas. – I want you to come.
Espero que tengas tiempo. – I hope you have time.

Using es (Quiero que mi dieta es…) is ungrammatical in this structure.

Why do we need “que” here? Could I just say “Quiero mi dieta sea buena para la salud”?

The que is obligatory in this kind of sentence.

Spanish uses verb + que + subordinate clause when what you want/hope/etc. is another action or state:

Quiero que mi dieta sea buena…
Quiero que estudies más.

Without que, the structure is wrong:
✗ Quiero mi dieta sea buena… – ungrammatical.

If you remove que, you must change the structure:

Quiero una dieta buena para la salud. – I want a diet that is good for my health. (here una dieta is a direct object, not a clause)

Could I say “Quiero que mi dieta es buena para la salud” like in English “I want that my diet is…”?

No. That’s a direct transfer from English and it doesn’t work in Spanish.

After quiero que…, the verb must be in the subjunctive:

✓ Quiero que mi dieta sea buena para la salud.
✗ Quiero que mi dieta es buena para la salud.

So the pattern is:

Quiero que + [subject] + [verb in subjunctive].

Why is it “sea” (from ser) and not “esté” (from estar)?

Because this describes a general characteristic of the diet, not a temporary state.

ser → inherent, more permanent qualities, definitions
- Mi dieta es buena para la salud. – My diet is (in general) good for my health.
estar → temporary states or conditions
- Mi dieta está bien para ahora. – My diet is OK for now.

Since we’re talking about the overall nature of the diet, ser is the natural choice: sea.

What’s the difference between “Quiero que mi dieta sea buena para la salud” and “Quiero una dieta buena para la salud”?

Both are correct but slightly different in focus:

Quiero que mi dieta sea buena para la salud.
– You already have a diet (or the idea of one) and you want it to be healthy. Focus on the quality of my diet.
Quiero una dieta buena para la salud.
– You want a healthy diet (you don’t have one yet, or you’re looking for one). Focus on getting such a diet.

In many contexts, the difference is subtle and both might be understood similarly, but grammatically the focus is different.

Why is it “para la salud” and not just “para salud”?

In Spanish, abstract nouns like salud (health), vida (life), amor (love) often take the definite article la/el when used in a general sense:

Es bueno para la salud. – It’s good for (your) health.
Fumar es malo para la salud.

Saying para salud sounds incomplete or unnatural in standard Spanish. The expected form is para la salud.

Can I say “para mi salud” instead of “para la salud”?

Yes, but it changes the nuance slightly:

buena para la salud – good for health in general, or implicitly for people’s health.
buena para mi salud – explicitly good for my health.

In many real conversations you might hear:

Quiero que mi dieta sea buena para mi salud.

Both are correct; para la salud is just more general.

Why “para” and not “por” in “para la salud”?

Because para usually expresses purpose, destination, or benefit:

Es bueno para la salud. – It is good for health (benefit).
Un regalo para ti. – A present for you.

por is used more for cause, reason, exchange, movement, etc.:

Lo hago por ti. – I do it because of you / on your behalf.
Lo cambié por otro. – I exchanged it for another one.

So when something is beneficial to someone/something, Spanish uses para.

Is there a more natural way to say “good for health” in Spanish, like an adjective?

Yes. You’ll often hear:

saludable – healthy
sano/sana – healthy (in Spain, sano is very common for food/diet)

So you can say:

Quiero que mi dieta sea saludable.
Quiero que mi dieta sea sana.

buena para la salud, saludable, and sana are all natural in Spain; sana sounds particularly everyday and common.

Does “dieta” in Spanish only mean a “weight-loss diet”?

No. dieta can mean both:

A specific eating plan to lose or gain weight, or for medical reasons.
Your regular eating habits in general (what you usually eat).

In many contexts in Spain:

Mi dieta es muy variada. – My diet / the way I eat is very varied.

So in your sentence, it can mean either “my eating habits” or “the diet I follow”, depending on context.

Is the word order “mi dieta sea buena para la salud” fixed? Could I say “sea buena mi dieta para la salud”?

The normal, neutral word order is:

[subject] + [verb] + [complements]
→ mi dieta sea buena para la salud

You can change the order for emphasis or in poetry:

Quiero que sea buena, mi dieta, para la salud. (very marked, poetic/speaking style)

But in standard everyday Spanish, you would not say “sea buena mi dieta para la salud”; it sounds unnatural or overly literary. Stick to mi dieta sea buena para la salud.

Is “Quiero” too direct in Spain? Should I use “Me gustaría” or “Quisiera”?

Here, you’re just talking about your own wish, so Quiero… is perfectly natural and not rude:

Quiero que mi dieta sea buena para la salud.

For requests to other people, Spaniards often soften quiero:

Quiero un café. – Can sound a bit direct.
Quisiera un café. / Me gustaría un café. – More polite/softer.

In a sentence about your personal goals or wishes (like your diet), Quiero… is very common and sounds fine.