Doctor Amir Khan said people are being bombarded with advice to load up rather than just drink water to stay hydrated07:24, 10 Jul 2026The UK is in the middle of a heatwave - and people are being told to make sure they hydrate properly. Temperatures exceeded 34C on Thursday, marking the the eighth day this has happened in 2026, the Met Office said.‌The forecasting agency said it makes 2026 a record year for the most number of days to reach 34C or higher in a calendar year. It beats the previous record of seven days set in both the summer of 1976 and 2020.‌Amber heat health alerts have been issued by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) for the Midlands and southern England from 9am on Wednesday until 9pm on Sunday. This means significant impacts are likely across health and social care services, including a rise in deaths, particularly among those aged 65 and over or with health conditions.‌Appearing on the Woman and Home podcast TV doctor Amir Khan who has appeared on ITV’;s Lorraine and This Morning gave his verdict on whether people should be using electrolytes instead of water. Electrolytes are essential minerals that carry a natural positive or negative electrical charge when dissolved in water. Found in your blood, urine, and tissues, they are crucial for basic life functions like regulating nerve impulses, contracting muscles, balancing your pH levels, and maintaining proper hydration.Advice on taking the additives includes if you’re doing strenuous exercise, especially if it’s for longer than an hour. It’s recommended to drink water before, during and after a person exercises to keep hydrated. However, if the person is exercising for longer than an hour, experts say it is important that they also replace the sodium that you lose through sweating. Sports drinks that contain electrolytes, including sodium and potassium, can be a useful way to replace lost electrolytes.‌Content cannot be displayed without consentDr Khan said: “We’re going to talk about electrolytes because they are everywhere right now. People are adding powders to their water, putting salt in their drinks, and talking about optimising hydration. But what are electrolytes and do we actually need to be doing any of this? Well, so first, electrolytes are just minerals. Things like sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium.“They carry an electrical charge and they help your body do some really important things like balance fluids support your nerves and keep your muscles, including your heart, working properly. Now, we naturally lose electrolytes through things like sweat and urine. And if you’re unwell, things like vomiting and diarrhoea. And this is where the online trend comes from.”Article continues belowDr Khan said that the biggest used comes with extreme exercise: “Because if you’re doing intense exercise, especially in hot weather, or you’re running marathons or you’re losing a lot of fluids, then yes, replacing electrolytes can be really helpful. But for most people just living their normal day-to-day life. You don’t need to be adding electrolyte powders to your water. Your body is actually very good at regulating this on its own.”Dr Khan said he was also seeing a lot of advice online to add salt to water: “Now, what about this idea of adding salt to your water, which I’m seeing a lot of online. For most people, that’s not necessary. In fact, it can mean you’re taking in more salt than you need, which over time can affect things like your blood pressure. For everyday hydration, plain water is absolutely fine.“We’d be doing it for centuries before influences came along. So, the bottom line is electrolytes are important, but they’re not something most of us need to overthink. If you’re sweating a lot, exercising hard, or unwell, yeah, they can help. Otherwise, eat a balanced diet, drink regularly, and don’t believe everything you see on Tik Tok.”