AhChoo!, Jennifer Ackerman
AhChoo!, Jennifer Ackerman
List: $16.99 | Sale: $11.89
Club: $8.49

Ah-Choo!
The Uncommon Life of Your Common Cold

Author: Jennifer Ackerman

Narrator: Emily Durante

Unabridged: 7 hr 2 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 09/07/2010


Synopsis

Scientists call this the Golden Age of the Common Cold because Americans suffer up to a billion colds each year, resulting in 40 million days of missed work and school and 100 million doctor visits. They've also learned over the past decade much more about what cold viruses are, what they do to the human body, and how symptoms can be addressed. In this ode to the odious cold, Jennifer Ackerman sifts through the chatter about treatments—what works, what doesn't, and what can't hurt. She dispels myths, such as susceptibility to colds reflects a weakened immune system. And she tracks current research, including work at the University of Virginia at Charlottesville, a world-renowned center of cold research studies, where the search for a cure continues.

About Jennifer Ackerman

Jennifer Ackerman is the author of Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream: A Day in the Life of Your Body; Chance in the House of Fate: A Natural History of Heredity; and Notes from the Shore. A contributor to National Geographic, the New York Times, and many other publications, her articles and essays have been included in several anthologies, among them Best American Science Writing, the Nature Reader, and Best Nature Writing. Jennifer lives in Charlottesville, Virginia.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Jim on March 05, 2020

An interesting, if wandering look at colds. There's some great information here. I hadn't realized there were 5 major families of cold viruses such as rhino, covid, & flu. They all have different areas where they like to bother us (rhino = nose) & the way to avoid them is pretty much the same - don'......more

Goodreads review by Jonna on October 20, 2013

As is unfortunately often the case in an era when it's hard to make money in publishing, I thought this book was about two drafts from being finished. A skilled editor could have helped the author narrow her scope/define her subject appropriately, or at least explain the choices she made -- lumping......more

Goodreads review by Ed on July 05, 2020

Quite timely, since many colds are caused by a coronavirus. (They can also be caused by Rhinovirus, some forms of Flu virus, or even other types of viruses.) For the most part, they cause no actual harm. The symptoms you feel are caused by your immune system, not the virus itself. Interesting, and re......more

Goodreads review by Anastasia on December 31, 2020

i think it's quite comprehensive for its main topic......more

Goodreads review by Sandra on September 12, 2010

What a delightful read! If you have any interest in colds, the operations of your body, viruses or science in general, you will want to read this book! In sprightly, organized, entertaining form, the book informs the reader about what colds are and aren't, how colds operate in the body, how they spr......more