Pear-shaped cartoon character Homer Simpson often has severe breathing problems when he tries to pick up the pace.

That makes sense because we have long known that obesity is a serious risk factor for developing respiratory issues. About 39 percent of folks who are obese develop asthma.

What's the connection? A new lab study in the American Journal of Physiology Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology suggests that having a high body mass index triggers body-wide and localized inflammation in the lungs, which leads to constriction of airways and asthma.

Fortunately, losing weight can help ease the symptoms.

In one Danish study, obese participants who lost 14.5 percent of their initial weight saw a "48 to 100 percent remission of asthma symptoms and use of asthma medication."

But what hasn't been recognized, until now, is that asthma is a risk factor for becoming obese.

A new study tracked more than 8,600 people and found that 10.2 percent of people with asthma at the start of the study had become obese at the 10-year mark; only 7.7 percent of those without asthma were obese at that point.

Those who developed asthma as adults and those with non-allergic asthma were at even greater risk of post-diagnosis obesity.

So if you develop asthma, it’s is one more reason to stick with a long-term asthma control regimen that works to increase, not decrease, your physical activity, with your doctor’s advice.

Don't just rely on a rescue inhaler.