The Germ Freak’s Guide to Outwitting Colds and Flu

Allison Janse
Health Communictaions (2005)
ISBN 0757303277
Reviewed by Irene Watson for Reader Views (1/06)

This book is certainly more than what the title indicates. It is more than outwitting colds and flu, it is about finding out where germs reside. Allison Janse, in her book “The Germ Freak’s Guide to Outwitting Colds and Flu,” gives the reader a candid but educational account of how to avoid picking up the germs, as well as how to prevent the spread of them.

I didn’t know why I didn’t like buffets, but after reading “The Germ Freak’s Guide to Outwitting Colds and Flue” I have a clearer understanding. Janse claims that food is not kept hot enough, chicken or tuna salads are usually made from old ingredients, and soups or chili pots are not cleaned before more is added. However, Janse also gives pointers as to when to go to buffets, e.g. early, take food from the back of the bin, go wide around grazers, and eat the cold foods which, by law, have to be kept at certain temperatures.

Janse points out that the germiest spot in the workplace is the phone with 25,127 germs per square inch and the desktop has 20,961. Surprisingly enough, the toilet seat only has 49 germs per square inch. From Janse’s findings it is safer to eat your lunch off the toilet seat than your desk! And, then there are horrid discoveries on airplanes. But, I will leave it to the reader to find out what those are.

Personally, I’m not sure that I needed to know all the information that was given to me by Janse! I’m just grateful that I have a healthy immune system. This book is not for the germ-a-phobic, but for anyone that wants to take precautions to avoid getting sick. I commend Janse for all her research and the ability to put it together in a book that is easy to read and understand.

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