National Post

Breathe deeply

I would just like to say I am in total agreement with the editorial, Lighten Up (Dec. 18) criticizing the draconian restrictions on smoking British Columbia has imposed. There is one aspect of the editorial, however, I would like to challenge: namely the common myth about second-hand smoke and asthma.

I have suffered from asthma for most of my 45 years. I was repeatedly hospitalized in the Children's Hospital (Winnipeg) for a large part of the 1960s. I also grew up in a house with four full-time smokers. I had needle after needle to discover the cause of my asthma was dust, pollen, and pet fur. Second-hand smoke was specifically ruled out as both a cause or irritant of my asthma. Those were the days however, when medical professionals were interested in treating disease rather than making a political diagnosis.

Warren Klass,
Winnipeg