A Japanese professor on Wednesday launched what he said was the worlds first web-based psychotherapy sessions available via mobile phone, as the country grapples with a growing problem of depression.

The interactive service offers cognitive therapy sessions that identify a persons level of depression by asking questions about his or her sleeping and eating habits, weight change, and emotional well-being.

Using their mobile phones -- which are also widely substituted in Japan as wallets, train tickets, books, and television -- people can easily access the service.

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