Glen Korstrom
Northern News Services

INUVIK (Feb 05/99) - Second-hand smoke is often to blame when Inuvik area children are sick, according to community health representative Cindy Stewart.

She says many lingering signs of being unwell, such as shortness of breath, coughing, asthma attacks, ear infections, bronchitis and pneumonia, are often prompted when children breathe in cigarette smoke at home.

"It's mainly in the home," she says.

"There's a lot of sick kids out there who suffer from smoke-related illnesses and their parents don't realize smoking has triggered it."

Stewart spent time in January at a booth at the Northern Store, getting people at random to fill out questionnaires. Though only 21 surveys were filled out, Stewart found 14 people smoked and of those people, 12 smoked around children.

"We're not surprised at the findings. We know a lot of people smoke in front of children and a lot of illnesses are a result of that."

A recent study in the Journal of Anaesthesiology backs Stewart up by finding passive smoke exposure to be a dangerous risk for children receiving general anaesthetics. It recommends kids be routinely screened for exposure to environmental tobacco smoke as a part of their routine pre-operative assessment.

And while health professionals are taking aim at parents who forsake their children's right to breathe clean air, Inuvik resident Dev Sharma has a challenge for government workers who routinely take extra breaks to satisfy a nicotine urge.

"If outside of regular coffee breaks or lunch, they still go for smoke breaks for 40 minutes, then they should stay after work for 40 minutes. Then they will be deciding, should they sacrifice their family life," Sharma says.

He said if workers had to stay after their set quitting time to make up for "unproductive time" during the work day, they would provide a good example to children that smoking is a waste of time.

Another of Sharma's ideas is for those workers to donate part of their salaries, earned during unproductive smoke breaks, to a worthy charity.

The Town of Inuvik has never had a smoking bylaw to regulate businesses and the NWT Workers' Compensation Board has not yet followed British Columbia's lead by decreeing no worker be forced to enter a room where smoking is allowed.

But even though a number of Inuvik residents smoke, unlike southern Canada, more area businesses are starting to go smoke-free and are posting signs in their doorways.

Inuvik TV, for example, has banned smoking from its entire domed confines. And according to owner Tom Zubko, his concern is for all the equipment.

"Ever know anyone who smoked in their car?" he asks.

"Run your finger across the windshield and you'll see a film. That's why it's bad for our equipment."

Inuvik Regional Hospital public relations officer Deb Pennel says the building is non-smoking except for long- term care patients who are allowed to smoke in a downstairs hallway.

"We're not about to take away their cigarettes after they've been smoking their entire lives."

Staff at both area schools must smoke outside.