A police report has shown those in mental distress are more likely to have a taser discharged at them and more likely to be subjected to police force.

The 2016 Police Tactical Options Research reports show the ratio of a taser being discharged when pulled out for someone classified as mentally ill or suicidal is four-to-one, in comparison to someone where no mental distress is present, where the ratio is six-to-one.

The statistics also show of the 5000 cases where police used some form of force, 19 per cent of those were on someone who was deemed mentally ill or suicidal.

In a statement on Thursday, police said they relied on officers to choose the most appropriate response to mental health incidents.

"During the course of any day, police can deal with people in mental health distress or people who are adversely affected by alcohol and drugs or are emotionally charged," they said.

"The vast majority of the thousands of mental health incidents that police deal with every year do not involve the use of force."

The total number of mental health or suicide incidents is on the rise with police responding to roughly 35,000 mental health-related call-outs in the past year.

Police guidelines around mental health incidents are discretionary and the definition of mental impairment is not defined in legislation.

The police mental health department and Mental Health New Zealand have been approached for comment.