Japanese for Talking About Diet Fads and Popular Foods
Learn to discuss trendy diets, boom foods, and health fads in natural intermediate Japanese, using 〜がはやっている, 〜と言われている, and balanced opinion phrases.
By MarcusFood & cafés · Yapr Learn
Diet fads come and go quickly in Japan, just as they do elsewhere: banana diets, morning banana routines, natto for breakfast, or the latest protein boom. To join these conversations, you need more than food vocabulary. You need patterns for saying something is trendy, for reporting what people say, and for giving a balanced personal opinion. This lesson focuses on that specific skill: talking about fads, not about long-term sustainability. You will practise 〜がはやっている (is trendy), 〜と言われている (it is said that), 〜気がする (I have a feeling that), and 〜ほど〜ない (not as ... as ...). These let you describe a boom, repeat a claim without endorsing it, and gently disagree. All examples use natural Japanese script with consistent Hepburn romanization.
By the end, you can…
- say that a food or diet is currently trendy using 〜がはやっている.
- report a health claim without personally endorsing it using 〜と言われている.
- give a balanced opinion about a fad using 〜気がする and 〜ほど〜ない.
Listen once. Try it slowly. Then say it without looking.
Checking available voices…
最近、朝バナナダイエットがまた はやっているみたい。
Apparently the morning banana diet is trendy again lately.
Saikin, asa banana daietto ga mata hayatte iru mitai.
みたい softens hearsay; use it when you noticed the trend indirectly, for example online or among friends.
納豆は体にいいと言われています。
It is said that natto is good for your health.
Nattō wa karada ni ii to iwarete imasu.
This reports a common claim without saying you believe it. The passive 言われています keeps it neutral and polite.
流行っているけど、長く続けるのは難しい気がする。
It's trendy, but I have a feeling it's hard to keep up long term.
Hayatte iru kedo, nagaku tsuzukeru no wa muzukashii ki ga suru.
気がする expresses a personal impression, softer than a flat assertion. Useful for disagreeing politely.
糖質制限は思ったほど効果がないかもしれない。
Cutting carbs might not be as effective as I thought.
Tōshitsu seigen wa omotta hodo kōka ga nai kamoshirenai.
〜ほど〜ない means 'not as ... as ...'. Adding かもしれない makes the doubt tentative and non-confrontational.
そのブーム、もう下火になったよね。
That boom has already died down, hasn't it?
Sono būmu, mō shitage ni natta yo ne.
下火 literally means 'low fire' and describes a fading trend. よね invites agreement from your listener.
Pronunciation guides are approximate. Slow playback keeps the original pitch.
Make it make sense
Useful pattern
The core pattern for trends is 〜がはやっている, where はやる means 'to be in fashion or widespread'. Use it with foods, diets, and activities: プロテインがはやっている (protein is trendy), 朝食を抜くのがはやっている (skipping breakfast is trendy). To report a claim you have heard but do not personally guarantee, use the passive 〜と言われている: 水をたくさん飲むといいと言われている (it is said that drinking lots of water is good). For a softer personal view, attach 気がする to a plain clause: 効果がある気がする (I have a feeling it works). To compare two things negatively, use AはBほど〜ない: このダイエットはあのダイエットほど人気がない (this diet is not as popular as that one).
When to use it
Choose はやっている when describing a current boom you can observe, and 下火になった when it is fading. Use と言われている in neutral conversation or light reporting, but avoid it when you are stating your own firm belief; then say 〜と思う instead. Use 気がする when you want to disagree gently: 効果がある気がしない (I don't feel it works) is much softer than 効果がない (it doesn't work). Use 〜ほど〜ない when comparing two fads without sounding harsh: 糖質制限は断食ほどきつくない (carb cutting is not as tough as fasting). In polite settings, add です・ます to the final predicate, as in はやっているみたいですね.
Listen to each line, then take one part and reply out loud.
最近、プロテインを飲む人が増えたよね。何かブームなの？
Lately more people are drinking protein, right? Is it some kind of boom?Saikin, purotein o nomu hito ga fueta yo ne. Nanika būmu na no?うん、筋肉をつけるのにいいと言われているから、若い人にはやっているみたい。
Yeah, because it's said to be good for building muscle, it seems trendy among young people.Un, kinniku o tsukeru no ni ii to iwarete iru kara, wakai hito ni hayatte iru mitai.でも、普通の食事で足りる気がする。わざわざ買うほど必要かな。
But I have a feeling regular meals are enough. Is it necessary enough to go out of your way to buy it?Demo, futsū no shokuji de tariru ki ga suru. Wazawaza kau hodo hitsuyō kana.そうだね。流行っているけど、長く続けるのは難しいかもしれないね。
True. It's trendy, but it might be hard to keep up long term.Sō da ne. Hayatte iru kedo, nagaku tsuzukeru no wa muzukashii kamoshirenai ne.A little context goes a long way
In Japanese conversation, directly rejecting someone's health claim can feel blunt. Phrases like 〜と言われている and 〜気がする let you distance yourself from a fad while staying friendly. Note also that はやっている often carries a hint of 'temporary', so pairing it with 下火になった signals that you see the trend as passing rather than permanent. Register matters: みたい and よね suit casual talk, while と言われています fits polite or workplace conversation.
One thing to watch for
Using はやっている to mean 'I like it' or 'it is popular with me'.
Try this instead: はやっている describes a trend among many people, not personal preference. To express liking, say 好きです or 気に入っています. For example, 私は納豆が好きです (I like natto), not 納豆がはやっています, which would wrongly mean natto is trendy.
Your turn
Try answering out loud before checking a possible answer.
1How would you say 'It is said that skipping breakfast is bad for you' using the passive report pattern?
Show a sample answer
朝食を抜くのは体に悪いと言われています。
This uses the passive と言われています to report a common claim neutrally. 朝食を抜くのは体に悪い is the quoted content. A valid alternative is 朝食を抜くのはよくないと言われています, which is slightly softer.
2You want to disagree gently with a friend who says a trendy diet works. Which phrase fits best: 効果がない or 効果がある気がしない?
Show a sample answer
効果がある気がしない。
気がしない expresses a personal impression and softens the disagreement, which suits friendly conversation. 効果がない is a flat denial and can sound blunt. Both are grammatically fine, but the first is more polite in tone.
3Translate: 'This diet is not as popular as that one.'
Show a sample answer
このダイエットはあのダイエットほど人気がない。
The pattern AはBほど〜ない means 'A is not as ... as B'. Here 人気がない follows ほど. You could also say このダイエットはあのダイエットほどはやっていない, which shifts the focus to trendiness rather than general popularity.
Use はやっている for trends, と言われている to report claims neutrally, and 気がする or 〜ほど〜ない to disagree gently about diet fads.
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