Health News from NHS Choices

• 'Universal' colour-coded food nutrition labels

  A radical overhaul of how nutritional information is displayed on the front of the packaging of many food products has been announced. The government, food makers and food retailers have agreed the new standardised front-of-pack labelling to help make it easier for people to make healthier choices about what they buy...

• Health claims about vitamin D examined

  Rarely a month goes by without the papers reporting at least one health news story related to vitamin D. In recent weeks the media has reported that vitamin D can help relieve the symptoms of asthma and lower blood pressure. There have been long-standing claims that vitamin D brings a wide range of...

• Misguided claims alcohol in pregnancy helps baby

  “A glass of wine every day in pregnancy could be good for your baby,” is the entirely incorrect headline in The Daily Telegraph today. Other newspapers reported that drinking while pregnant does ‘no harm’, these claims are also misleading. The news is based on a new study investigating the link between...

• Baldness drug finasteride 'cuts men's drinking'

  “Anti-baldness drug can cause men to lose interest in alcohol,” reports the Mail Online. This report is based on a small survey of young men who had been taking the drug, finasteride, for hair loss. Impotence and decreased libido are recognised side effects of this anti-male-hormone drug, and all 83...

• Earlier breast screening in high-risk women shows 'encouraging' results

  "Women with a family history of breast cancer should be screened in their thirties," says The Daily Telegraph. The news relates to an ongoing study that aims to look at the effects of mammography screening in women with a family history of breast cancer when they are between the ages of 35...