Cold War smoking cure comes into vogue

A cheap pill sold in Bulgaria since 1964 is gaining international coverage as a revived cure for smokers keen to kick the habit.

Tabex, which is manufactured by the Bulgarian Sopharma company, has been on the Eastern European market for almost 50 years, but it has yet to make it further afield.

However, a range of high profile medical tests by the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine has indicated that the plant-based drug could catch on elsewhere, not least on account of its favourable price tag.

It has been estimated that commonplace Western anti-smoking products can set back the customer as much as 100 dollars per month.

However, a course of Tabex will cost the user less than a quarter of that amount, at between 6 to 15 dollars a month.

Tests carried out by University College London for the New England Journal of Medicine showed that Tabex compared very well with more expensive cures, after testing the product on 740 volunteers.