The Joy of Sweat: The Strange Science of Perspiration

by Sarah Everts Narrated by Sophie Amoss

Overview

An Outside Magazine 2021 Science book pick

One of Smithsonian's 10 Best Science Books of 2021



A taboo-busting romp through the shame, stink, and strange science of sweating.

Sweating may be one of our weirdest biological functions, but it's also one of our most vital and least understood. In The Joy of Sweat, Sarah Everts delves into its role in the body-and in human history.

Why is sweat salty? Why do we sweat when stressed? Why do some people produce colorful sweat? And should you worry about Big Brother tracking the hundreds of molecules that leak out in your sweat-not just the stinky ones or alleged pheromones-but the ones that reveal secrets about your health and vices?

Everts's entertaining investigation takes readers around the world-from Moscow, where she participates in a dating event in which people sniff sweat in search of love, to New Jersey, where companies hire trained armpit sniffers to assess the efficacy of their anti-sweat products. In Finland, Everts explores the delights of the legendary smoke sauna and the purported health benefits of good sweat, while in the Netherlands she slips into the sauna theater scene, replete with costumes, special effects, and towel dancing.

Along the way, Everts traces humanity's long quest to control sweat, culminating in the multibillion-dollar industry for deodorants and antiperspirants. And she shows that while sweating can be annoying, our sophisticated temperature control strategy is one of humanity's most powerful biological traits.

Deeply researched and written with great zest, The Joy of Sweat is a fresh take on a gross but engrossing fact of human life.

Editorial Reviews

AUGUST 2021 - AudioFile

If you feel kind of gross when you sweat, Sarah Everts will make you realize how cool it is that we humans regulate our body temperatures this way. Narrator Sophie Amoss channels the author’s wry humor with impeccable timing and a slightly scratchy timbre. Everts travels down several fascinating and quirky paths—sauna theater (yes, that is a thing), sniff dating events (yes, also a real thing), and rare genetic disorders resulting in too much sweating or no sweating at all. Amoss is pitch-perfect at capturing the right tone every time. She won’t let your attention falter during the scientific explanations either. After learning that elephants flap their ears, bees vomit on themselves, and pigs roll in the mud to cool themselves down, maybe sweating isn’t so bad after all. A.B. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2022 Audies Winner © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

Terri Schlichenmeyer

"[A] whole lot of fun…[M]issing The Joy of Sweat would be the pits."

Maryn McKenna

"It makes us stink, it makes us stand out, it makes us shy—is there anything worth saying about sweat? Turns out, yes. Sarah Everts' sensitive, clever, funny inquiry into perspiration leads us on a tour through privacy, technology, history, sexuality, and ultimately the mysteries of being human."

Bookpage (starred review)

"Entertaining…As she tackles a subject that some people deem taboo or even gross, Everts incorporates interesting historical facts, market research and scientific discoveries, skillfully turning science into poetry."

Irina Dumitrescu

"A fascinating account of an involuntary bodily function that turns out to be as unique as a fingerprint."

Kerri Miller

"Delightful."

Alex Hutchinson

"The Joy of Sweat is meticulously researched, delightfully told, and—whether we like it or not—universally relatable."

Mary Elizabeth Williams

"Entertaining."

Bethany Brookshire

"Everts’ plunge into sweat is full of energy, and her open curiosity about our much-maligned bodily secretion leaks onto every page."

Christie Aschwanden

"Sweating makes us human and in The Joy of Sweat, Sarah Everts explains the fascinating science behind this remarkable physiological function. Perspiration doesn’t just keep us cool, it also reveals a lot about us—everything from the flavor of potato crisps we eat to the bugs in our microbiome. Everts debunks loads of sweat-related bunk and takes readers on fascinating adventures to explore how sweating helps us adapt to our environment and navigate our social networks. The Joy of Sweat provides riveting lessons about physiology, hormones, sociology, and even love."

Emily Cataneo

"This beach read is both an ode to sweat and a call to arms to celebrate, rather than spurn, this miraculous process…[A] cheerful, unabashed deep dive into the dank world of sweat and stink."

Andrew Robinson

"[A] well-researched, zesty study."

Booklist

"A witty, informative, and quirky consideration of this bodily fluid…Perspiration is cooler than you'd ever imagine."

Jennifer Szalai

"An entertaining and illuminating guide to the necessity and virtues of perspiration…Everts is a crisp and lively writer."

Oprah Daily

"A glowing, revelatory account that belongs on the same shelf with works by Ed Yong and Carl Zimmer."

Simon Humphreys

"Everts has charm and enthusiasm, writes breezily and, along the way, effectively debunks a number of enduring myths…[F]un, entertaining and full of interesting facts."

Library Journal

06/01/2021

Everts (journalism, Carleton Univ.) takes on the (almost) universal human attribute of sweat. Humans are nearly the only animal that sweats; it's the most efficient method of dispelling body heat in the animal kingdom. Yet many of us would rather hide our perspiration than revel in it. Everts dives into the science of sweat production and the workings of the human cooling system. She discusses the constituents of sweat and why, occasionally, people will sweat in color; and debunks the theory that sweating detoxifies the body. The author explains other animals' methods of cooling; seals urinate on themselves, while honeybees use their own vomit. Pigs wallow in mud to cool down (thus the inaccuracy of the phrase "sweating like a pig"). Everts visits a Russian "smell dating" event; relates the history of deodorants; immerses herself in Finnish sauna culture and discusses the possible benefits of sauna to cardiac health; and talks to textile conservators who have to decide whether and how to remove sweat stains from historical clothing destined for museum display. VERDICT Engaging popular science that will spark the interest of anyone curious about this unique bodily function.—Rachel Owens, Daytona State Coll. Lib., FL

AUGUST 2021 - AudioFile

If you feel kind of gross when you sweat, Sarah Everts will make you realize how cool it is that we humans regulate our body temperatures this way. Narrator Sophie Amoss channels the author’s wry humor with impeccable timing and a slightly scratchy timbre. Everts travels down several fascinating and quirky paths—sauna theater (yes, that is a thing), sniff dating events (yes, also a real thing), and rare genetic disorders resulting in too much sweating or no sweating at all. Amoss is pitch-perfect at capturing the right tone every time. She won’t let your attention falter during the scientific explanations either. After learning that elephants flap their ears, bees vomit on themselves, and pigs roll in the mud to cool themselves down, maybe sweating isn’t so bad after all. A.B. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2022 Audies Winner © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

2021-05-15
A popular-science treatment of an overlooked area of study.

Perspiration is neither a fashionable body secretion nor of much interest to publishers, so most readers have not encountered a book on the subject, but science writer and journalism instructor Everts fills that gap admirably. She begins with a few jolts. A resting human produces as much heat as a 60-watt light bulb, which is usually more than we need. Evaporating fluid consumes heat, a process that keeps us cool. Through several million tiny sweat glands, we extract fluid from the blood and spread it over the skin. Odorless until bacteria act on it, it develops a smell, unique to every individual. Though repulsive to most Americans, in other parts of the world it is considered unobjectionable and sometimes interesting. Few readers will skip the chapter on the history of deodorants, an American invention. Outside of humans, sweating is uncommon. Horses and most monkeys and apes sweat; other animals pant, roll in mud, stay in the shade, or work at night. The sole purpose of human sweat is to cool the body; despite the common belief, it doesn’t remove waste or toxins, so excessive sweating has no health benefits. Throughout, Everts mixes facts with interviews and encounters with sweat-related activities across the world: Smell-dating is a real thing, as are sauna theaters, where several hundred naked spectators watch a performance in a 185-degree arena. Fingerprints are an impression left behind by sweat, and their chemical analysis may reveal other valuable forensic information. Everts interviewed a man who underwent surgery to treat massively excessive sweating, a fairly common medical condition. A rare genetic mutation produces children born without sweat glands; if not discovered early, they can die of heatstroke. The author’s prose is sometimes flippant and dense with amusing asides, quips on stinkiness, and embarrassing encounters, but she delivers a solid education.

Fascinating information for tolerant readers.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940172949494
Publisher:	Penguin Random House
Publication date:	07/13/2021
Edition description:	Unabridged

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