Marijuana might save your liver, according to a new study

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Weed has been shown to have various health benefits: pain management, quelling nausea, and, of course, the calming effects of relaxation.

And now that legal weed for recreational use is becoming increasingly common (9 states and Washington, D.C., full list here), an increasing number of studies are being funded to better illustrate and understand marijuana’s effects on your health.

The latest study? Smoking weed just might be incredibly beneficial for your liver.

According to researchers at the National Institute of Scientific Research at the University of Quebec, which used the hospital discharge records of nearly 320,000 patients who either currently abuse, or in the past have abused, alcohol, marijuana is something of a miracle drug:

Alcohol abusers who didn’t consume cannabis during their heavy drinking days had a whopping 90% chance of developing a liver disease. “Light” cannabis users, conversely, had only an 8% chance.

Subjects who drank alcohol excessively while getting high were found to have considerably lower chances of developing liver diseases, like hepatitis, steatosis, and cirrhosis, than those who only drank and passed on puff-puffing.