Experts reveal the food and drinks to avoid during a heatwave

And as summer hits there are plenty of tips and tricks floating around to help make it through the warmer temperatures. 

Among those are key tips to make sure you eat and drink plenty to keep your body hydrated. 

But there are certain foods and drinks that can dehydrate our bodies and should be avoided during the scorching weather. 

Alcohol should be avoided. (canva)

Experts from Forbes Advisor have joined up with nutritionist Abi Roberts to share what food you should avoid. 

Five foods you should avoid in the heatwave: 

1. Asparagus

Surprisingly, asparagus is one of the least hydrating foods. As it is a natural diuretic which rids the body of excess fluid — meaning you need to wee more and you lose the fluid that you consume.

Diuretics also help your body to get rid of salt, so are useful for the body, but should be consumed in moderation.

2. Salty snacks

The best-known dehydrating food is salty snacks — with pork scratchings being up there with the saltiest snacks.

Too much salt wreaks havoc on the kidneys, so limiting salt intake is important for overall health.

You should avoid Bread, (Canva)

3. Bread

Bread, although not terribly high in salt per slice, is one of the most common reasons behind people having too much salt in their diet.

Bread is often used at all mealtimes and even for snacks, so can add up to a high salt intake.

Limiting the amount of bread you eat will help reduce the sneaky salt that you didn’t even know you were consuming.

4. Cured meats

Cured meats are often heavily coated in salt, with gammon being a particular offender.

The kidneys overcompensate when there is too much salt in the bloodstream, and pull water from elsewhere in the body, leading to dehydration.

Make sure to drink plenty of water if you are indulging in a little antipasti this summer!

5. Sugar

When you consume sugar, the kidneys react similarly to when they encounter salt and pull water from other parts of the body, as the kidneys don’t want excess sugar in your bloodstream.

Sugar should be avoided. (Canva)

Five drinks you should avoid in the heatwave: 

1. Caffeine 

Caffeine is naturally dehydrating, meaning high caffeine drinks (even when mixed with water) can end up dehydrating you or neutralising the hydration from the water content.

Fizzy drinks often contain caffeine as well as high sugar content, making them one of the least hydrating beverage options.

2. Alcohol 

Alcohol is dehydrating and the higher the alcohol content, the more dehydrating the drink.

Alcohol removes water from the tissues in your body, which is why it’s common to feel like a shrivelled-up prune after a night of drinking.

Drinking spirits straight (without mixers) is most dehydrating, with low-alcoholic beers being the least dehydrating.

Hot Chocolate should be avoided (Canva)

3. Hot chocolate 

Hot chocolate can be very dehydrating due to its high sugar content. Often, it is packed with more sugar than fizzy drinks and sometimes combined with high-fat milk for flavour.

Opting for low sugar and water-based hot chocolate makes it easier to stay hydrated.

4. Energy drinks

Energy drinks are often packed with caffeine — which is a great tool to boost energy levels, but not so great for hydration.

The hugely increased caffeine content along with often a lot of sugar makes energy drinks dehydrating.

5. Smoothies

Smoothies aren’t great for hydration, even though the fruit and veg content is often full of water.

When you combine lots of fruit and veg and blend it, the sugars are released which makes it far less hydrating.

When the sugar is contained within the fruit or veg, it can digest through your body more slowly.