Popular supplement many people take daily could actually be harming your health

In the last few years, there have been several health supplements that seem to have broken out of the gym world and have become an everyday staple for anyone wanting to look after themselves.

First it was protein shakes, then it was creatine and now the buzz seems to be around electrolytes.

If you're not on the bandwagon, electrolyte supplements contain several essential minerals that the body loses through sweat, including sodium, potassium and magnesium.

For people who take part in sweaty, strenuous activities, like running long distances, topping up these minerals can help prevent against becoming depleted, which can lead to nasty side effects like muscle weakness and cramps, nausea and headaches, to name a few.

However, thanks to the growing influence of wellness content creators, more and more people are implementing electrolyte supplements into their day to day routine, regardless of their activity levels.

And while you might be thinking, even if there's no benefit to be had, there's no harm in taking them — you might be wrong.

According to NHS doctor and marathon runner, Dr Miranda Layton, consuming too many electrolytes could actually be harming your health.

"Here is what the fitness industry doesn’t want you to know: You might be drinking too many electrolytes. Most electrolyte drinks are high in sodium, which is just salt – the same stuff we put on our food," she wrote in an Instagram post earlier this year.

And if you're partial to cooking with salt and then chucking a bit extra on your meal when its made, the chances are you're probably already consuming enough (if not more than enough!)

Dr Layton added: "We know that too much salt in the blood over time can raise your blood pressure, but in the short term, overconsumption of electrolytes can cause dangerous changes to your heart rhythm – especially if you’re not actually dehydrated."

That's not to say electrolytes don't have their place. If you go to a hot yoga class once a week or you're feeling the effects of a particularly nasty hangover, topping up on your essential minerals is not a bad idea at all.

But as it turns out, unless you run marathons on the regs or don't consume any salt at all in your diet, the chances are you probably don't need to be drinking electrolytes everyday.

Look on the bright side though, at least it can't be as worse as one man who landed himself in hospital after accidentally overdosing on creatine.