People in the Isle of Man who are taking anti-depressants are being warned not to stop their medication without consulting a doctor.

A new report from the University of Hull questions the effectiveness of some drugs used to treat depression.

It suggests there was no difference in results when patients were given both genuine and dummy pills during clinical trials.

But Consultant in Public Health Medicine on the Island Dr Paul Emerson (pictured) says depression is a very serious illness which in many cases responds well to a combination of drug and cognitive behavioural therapies.

He fears the condition could spiral out of control if people don't take their prescribed medicine (audio file attached):

Dr Paul Emerson was speaking to Dan Davies on Talking Heads.