Pot smokers are skinnier, study says

According to a new study, pot smokers are skinnier than those who refrain from using marijuana.

This might come as a surprise to those who hit the fridge while high but new research published in the American Journal of Medicine finds it is not that far-fetched.

Researchers at the University of Nebraska, the Harvard School of Public Health and the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center tested insulin, blood sugar levels, cholesterol and waist size in 4,600 adults. 

Some 12 percent currently used marijuana, while another 42 percent reported lighting up in the past.

It turns out, those who used pot had smaller waists that those who had never used marijuana, even when they took into effect variables like gender, age, cigarette, alcohol use and even how active they were.

They also had higher levels of HDL, also known as the "good cholesterol."

More from GlobalPost: Colorado pot smokers can still be fired, court says

But the researchers said the biggest difference between the two study groups was that current marijuana users had significantly lower insulin levels which could explain why they also had lower diabetes rates.

More from GlobalPost: Obama: Busting pot smokers not a "top priority" for the feds