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Unwelcome news for footie fans; NICE blasted over smoking test and Meldrum on private screening tests

By Nigel Praities

Our roundup of health news headlines on Thursday 24 June.

NICE has the Daily Mail in histrionics this morning with their advice that midwives should give mothers-to-be a breath test to ensure they are not smoking.

The carbon monoxide test is designed to alert pregnant women to the damage they may be doing to their unborn child by smoking (and to catch those who may be sneaking the odd blow every so often), but the Mail says NICE should ‘mind their own business'.

In bad news for England fans over the summer (the obligatory football reference for today) evidence has emerged that every hour you spend in front of the TV raises your heart disease risk.

Those looking at their favourite progammes for four hours a day - the UK average - face a 28% increased risk of heart disease.

Lastly today, Dr Hamish Meldrum is in the news after he attacked ‘misleading' claims from private companies offering health screening tests. He said a number of the procedures on offer were unreliable and inaccurate and that people undergoing the tests were being given false reassurances in some cases.

Spotted something we've missed? Let us know and we'll update the digest throughout the day...

Daily Digest - 24 June 2010