Water--we are made up of it, we are surrounded by it, but we never usually consume enough of it.

In the body, water is the fluid in which all essential life processes occur. Every cell of our wonderful body, every tissue and organ needs water to function.

About 50-55% of women's bodies are made up of water. Ladies, the figures are 55-60% for men (because of the difference in lean body mass in the two sexes), just so you know. So, tell your man to down that aqua as you do.

Compared to most other sports, playing golf is considered a light exercise. Even so, as a golfer, you can lose a considerable amount of water through your skin's surface (perspiration) and as a by-product of your kidneys doing their job. During light exercise in a comfortable, moderate environment, an athlete can lose 500 to 1000 ml of water per hour, which amounts to one to two pounds of your daily fluid needs. During exercise, the goal is to fully replace this fluid loss.

Now, too much or too little water can have a profound effect on our health. So, what's recommended is that for each pound of water lost, you should consume about 16 ounces of fluid to maintain proper fluid balance. If you drink only enough to quench thirst, it will replace only half to two-thirds of the fluid lost. So, adjust your consumption accordingly and sip on the elixir of life as you wait around for the next putt.

Studies have shown that consumption of water every 10 to 15 minutes during exercise improves performance. And, it's important to drink about 8 to 10 ounces of water within the first 15 minutes following your golf session.

You will know if you are dehydrated. Signs of dehydration include unusual fatigue, light-headedness, nausea, headache, irritability, and dark urine or urinating infrequently (less than 4 times a day) besides thirst.

Dehydration is the major cause of poor performance, increased risk of heat exhaustion, illness, slow recovery, and increased risk of infections such as cold and flu. If you do not hydrate your body in time, chronic dehydration could lead to much more serious complications over the course of time--problems with your heart or kidneys or high blood pressure.

Besides, there are many other benefits of drinking water that are too important to ignore:

Your body will function at its best Food cannot be digested without water. It is required to break down and assimilate food. It carries essential nutrients into the blood stream.

Water helps digested food pass through the body quicker, preventing constipation. With adequate consumption of water, toxins and waste material are not given the chance to stay within the body for too long, when they can accumulate to dangerous levels.

Flushing our intestines with plenty of water allows us to maintain stable and safe quantities of yeast and bacteria, which play an important role in digestion and keep all our systems functioning optimally.