Your daily water intake, however, is a different measure. “While hydrating foods do count towards overall hydration, they don’t count towards your daily water intake of eight glasses a day,” says Bajekal. That two-ish litre goal is designed on top of food intake for optimum hydration levels.

Can foods hydrate you in summer?

The eight-glasses-a-day rule needs to be taken with a pinch of proverbial salt. “It’s rather arbitrary as there are many factors that affect water intake including age, gender, body weight, the environment, activity levels, medical conditions, pregnancy and breastfeeding,” says Bajekal.

Right now, with a 30°C heatwave expected in the UK, our water intake will probably need to go up a little to compensate for the extra fluid loss in sweat. That is when foods can be useful for those who struggle to drink even more water in the heat. So 100g of watermelon will contain roughly 90ml of water – not enough to fully hydrate you but it could be thirst-quenching.

Can foods really be as hydrating as water during a heatwave?