
Smokers will soon be able to light up less harmful cigarettes, thanks to Belgian scientists' successful efforts to produce a safer substance for an alternative cigarette, Belgian media reported.
The new cigarettes contain 70 percent less nicotine than normal ones and cause no harmful effects to passive smokers, researchers at the Catholic University Louvain said Tuesday.
The smoke caused by these new cigarettes contains no toxic substances for the smoker or his environment, but give the smoker the feeling and taste of regular cigarettes, according to the researchers.
They are also much cheaper to make than traditional cigarettes, they said.
The new discovery will be presented on Friday. A spokesperson for the researchers said it will be brought on the market in Belgium soon, and The Netherlands and Luxembourg later.