You know what they say about stoners: they are lazy, junk food eating zombies who glued to their couches and video game consoles. Well, it’s time to turn that cliche on its head. Like the expression, an apple a day that keeps the doctor away, a new health-related adage might sound like this: a joint a day keeps the fat and laziness away.
According to researchers at Oregon Health and Science University, people who partake in marijuana more than five times per month have a lower body mass index (BMI) than people who do not enjoy weed.
The conclusion noted that heavy users of cannabis, researchers noted had a lower mean BMI compared non-cannabis users. With a mean BMI measured at 26.7 kg/m in heavy users and 28.4 kg/m non-users the statistics speak for themselves. Researchers concluded that regular marijuana users are more physically, activity than those that use it occasionally or not at all.
A study published last year in the Journal of Mental Health Policy and Economics also concluded that pot smokers have a lower BMI than those who do not smoke or consume the plant. And get this; a 2013 a study published in the American Journal of Medicine noted that marijuana users have 16 percent lower levels of fasting insulin and 17 percent lower insulin resistance levels than non-users. The researchers concluded that marijuana use and smaller waist circumferences go hand in hand.
Now if you suffer from diabetes, you’re going to love this: The British Medical Journal in 2012 reported that cannabis consumers were less likely to develop diabetes compared to those who don’t enjoy weed.
And in the 2016 study, lead author Isabelle C. Beulaygue from the University of Miami concluded: “There is a popular belief that people who consume marijuana have the munchies, and so [THEY]are going to eat a lot and gain weight, and we found that it is not necessarily the case.”
Although the reasons why the findings occur have not been worked out by researchers, some scientists believe that people who consume cannabis regularly may be able to break down blood sugar more easily which translates into less weight gain.
So like the lyrics in a Peter Tosh song… legalize it, don’t criticize it!
