Getting closer to god might end up expanding your waistline. A new study Northwestern University presented recently at a meeting of the American Heart Association, states that "young adults who regularly attend religious activities may be more prone to obesity by middle age than their nonreligious peers."

The 18-year study followed the gut growth of 2,433 men and women starting between the ages of 20 and 32. Each person started out at what was determined to be "normal" body weight. Scientists deduced that, regardless of age race or gender, subjects who had attended a religious service at least once a week were more likely to wind up obese - landing a BMI of 30 or above.

“Our main finding was that people with a high frequency of religious participation in young adulthood were 50 percent more likely to become obese by middle age than those with no religious participation in young adulthood,” -- Matthew Feinstein, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

But why? Well, most concluded, at least anecdotally that one potential reason could be the 'potluck factor' - the tendency for people at religious gatherings to indulge in comfort foods.

So, if you consider yourself a religious type and plan on keeping your svelte girlish figure on into your 50's and 60's you may wish to seek comfort in the Lord and pass on the Devil's Food Cake.