A rise in the prescribing of Prozac emerged yesterday despite a campaign to cut the reliance on antidepressants.
New figures show the number of prescriptions for fluoxetine, the chemical name for Prozac, had risen by 6.8% from 596,007 in 2006 to 636,435 in 2007 - its highest level in a decade.
In the past 10 years, the number of scripts for the antidepressant have soared by 76.2% - from 361,227 in 1998, according to data produced in answer to a parliamentary question by LibDem health spokesperson Jamie Stone. In December 2006, the previous Scottish Executive announced they wanted to cut the rise in the prescribing of antidepressants to zero by 2010. The new SNP government has been even more ambitious, seeking a 10% reduction by 2009.
Mr Stone said: "This is an astonishing jump in prescriptions. The Health Secretary needs to consider if all these patients need Prozac, or if alternative treatments would be more appropriate.
"We must not allow Scotland to turn into a Prozac nation."
The Scottish Government was unavailable for comment.
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