A government health ­adviser has criticised an NHS calculator which ­predicts when people will have a heart attack or stroke, saying the science behind it is “ridiculous”.

Dr Ben Goldacre, who has just been appointed by the health secretary as chairman of the new Health Tech ­Advisory Board, suggested the test would needlessly frighten millions of healthy people.

He said the online quiz, offered by Public Health England (PHE) and the NHS website, was a “poorly executed gimmick” which would heap pressure on GPs by instructing everyone over the age of 30 to ­demand cholesterol checks.

PHE says almost two million people have completed the quiz, which found that four in five had a “heart age” older than their actual age, meaning they are at risk of a stroke or heart attack.

However, Dr Goldacre is among a number of doctors questioning the accuracy of their methods. The online tool asks individuals aged 30 and over a series of questions, including age, weight, family history of heart disease and readings of blood pressure and cholesterol levels.