Tabex is the most effective for smoking cessation. New Zealand scientists announced this in a summary of an independent study they conducted. They conducted a study comparing the action of Bulgaria’s Tabex – one of the flagships in Sopharma’s portfolio – and nicotine replacement therapy (NRT). The results are published in the prestigious medical journal “The New England Journal of Medicine“. In their view, Tabex is superior to other means of ending the harmful habit, and at a significantly lower cost and shorter treatment period.

As a smoking cessation method, Tabex has been used in Eastern Europe for over 50 years. It contains cytisine, an alkaloid from the plant Cytisus Laburnum, also known as Yellow Acacia or Golden Rain. Tabex breaks the vicious circle of cigarette addiction by precisely influencing the desire to smoke and the habits associated with the pleasure of lighting a cigarette.

The study, titled “Cytisine vs. Nicotine for Smoking Cessation“, was funded by the “New Zealand Institute for Health Innovation” and is the first study in the world to compare the different types of therapy. 1310 smokers from New Zealand took part, half received Tabex for twenty-five days and the other half received nicotine replacement therapy (nicotine gum, nicotine patches and nicotine patches) for eight weeks. Assignment to the two arms of the study was randomized in terms of ethnicity, gender and addiction level, etc.

After the study, the head of the New Zealand research team, Dr. Natalie Walker, shared that “Tabex is an effective smoking cessation aid that can be used as a first-line treatment for nicotine addiction and permanent smoking cessation“. During the treatment itself, participants taking Tabex reported more than 150% fewer nicotine withdrawal symptoms compared to nicotine replacement therapy (NRT).

The results show that Tabex has a comparably better effect than nicotine replacement therapy (NRT). One month of abstinence from smoking was reported in 40% of participants receiving Tabex and 31% of participants on nicotine replacement therapy. After two and six months of follow-up, Tabex remained more effective and with longer abstinence than nicotine replacement therapy (NRT).

“Tobacco smoking is one of the leading causes of death in the world. Since 70% of smokers want to quit smoking, but only 2.5% succeed, support in the form of pharmacotherapy is needed“, said the head of the lung disease clinic of the “Academy of Medical Sciences”, Assoc. dr. Kosta Kostov. “One of the reasons Tabex works so well is that when smokers take it, they stop enjoying the harmful habit and overcome the terrible symptoms of nicotine addiction much more easily and comfortably”, he added.

Another world authority on medicine, Prof. Nancy Rigotti of Harvard Medical School previously stated in a television interview that it is important for public health that Tabex is made more accessible to as many people as possible. The drug is not only more effective, but also cheaper, it has been used for decades and has a good safety profile, which could benefit millions of smokers, says Prof. Rigotti.

World-renowned scientist and addiction expert Prof. Robert West is even more impressed by Tabex, which is plant-based. Commenting on “New Scientist Magazine” he categorically stated “I think this is the biggest news in smoking cessation treatment ever“. “Here is a pill that can be produced for next to nothing, that can be bought by even the poorest smoker in India, and that can save literally millions of lives” added West.