Medical marijuana legalization has allowed researchers to discover new and useful aspects of the plant we may not have even thought of before. From treatment of multiple diseases and illnesses such as Parkinson’s disease to lowering body mass index, Marijuana has taken over as one of the most natural and effective remedies known to man.

We recently looked at whether or not marijuana causes users to be lazy. Although it may affect motivation in the short term, the new research is leaning towards a longer, productive, and improved quality of life for senior citizens. While that might be bad news for stoners looking to retire early, as marijuana may increase the amount of time seniors are in the work force.

In an article by Marijuana Times about data taken since California became the first state to legalize medical marijuana in 1996, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health in Baltimore and Temple University in Philadelphia shared some unique and surprising results.

States that have legalized marijuana for medical purposes have had a 9.4 percent increase in persons over the age of 50 actively in the workforce. In addition, those states also show an average increase of 4.6 to 4.9 percent of hours worked during the week. Workers in that age group who live in states with medical marijuana access also have more men and women reporting overall health as either “very good” or “excellent.”

It is no question that marijuana improves quality of life. Most of us do not need a study from Johns Hopkins University to tell us that. However, the fact that marijuana will actually improve life while prolonging the amount of time we are able to work and save for retirement is a fascinating discovery.  Hopefully it’s only a matter of time before employers make consuming green at work mandatory.