Sighing is an important movement for lung function. New research stresses not only the importance of sighing, but also where the reflex happens in the brain. “Most humans heave an involuntary sigh an average of 12 times an hour…These types of sighs are not related to emotion…Instead, they provide an extra gust of air that helps to re-inflate some of the 500 million tiny balloon-like sacs in our lungs called alveoli…[The]…part of the brain, called the pre-Bötzinger complex, is well known as the core of the breathing control center of the body. The new work could help scientists develop drugs that can induce sighing in people who don’t naturally sigh enough, or be used to inhibit sighs in those who suffer anxiety and other psychological disorders that can lead to too much sighing.” Researchers now want to look into other parts of the brain that might be affected by stress or emotion.