There is concern about the number of young children being prescribed Prozac-style antidepressants.

There are now 15,000 children on such medication. That number has nearly doubled in the last decade.

A mother, whose seven-year-old son was prescribed antidepressants, told Mike Hosking his anxiety was so severe he couldn't go to school.

But she's not entirely confident he should be on the medication.

"There is research to say that children are twice as likely to feel suicidal on antidepressants," she said.

She's calling for a greater focus on therapy for young people suffering from mental illness, rather than drugs.

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