What do ET (yes, we mean the Extraterrestrial being from the Stephen Speilberg movie), asthma, and depression have in common?

They were all part of a recent study, reported on by FoxNews, which showed that children who have asthma and symptoms of depression experience greater airway resistance when they are sad or stressed.

Dr. Bruce D. Miller of State University of New York at Buffalo and his colleagues studied the breathing patterns of 90 children between the ages of 7 and 17 before and after they watched scenes from ET: The Extraterrestrial. After watching distressing scenes of the movie, asthmatic children who also had depression symptoms consistently exhibited breathing problems that indicated worsening asthma.

Even if asthmatic children do not have depression, it is important to know that stressful or emotionally traumatic events may cause more intense asthmatic reactions.