The rise of Online gambling, which has led to a boom in commercial gambling across the world, poses a significant threat to public health, a new report says.
this The report released on Thursday, From a gambling public health committee convened by the medical journal The Lancet. The committee’s 22 members – academic experts from more than a dozen countries – reviewed existing research and surveys on the prevalence, impact and harms of gambling and determined that globally, current regulations are insufficient to protect the public and need to be strengthened.
“We’re no longer talking about people playing card games around tables,” said Louisa Degenhart, the committee’s epidemiology lead and a professor at the University of New South Wales in Sydney. “Many people may indeed be harmed by gambling – we think there are about 72 million people globally. This number is likely to increase as we see an increase in commercial organizations targeting people to gamble more.”
The report states that gambling is legal to some extent in more than 80% of countries around the world. Based on a systematic review of research, the authors estimate that 16% and 26% of adults and adolescents who use online casino or slot machine products have a gambling disorder, while 9% of adults and adolescents who use sports betting products have a gambling disorder and 16% had such disorders.
According to the American Gaming Association, 38 states and Washington, D.C., have legalized sports betting since the Supreme Court overturned the ban in 2018. Thirty states allow and regulate mobile sports betting. one 2022 Pew Research Center Survey found that 19% of U.S. adults placed a sports bet in person or online last year.
In addition to financial losses, gambling can cause people to lose their jobs, relationships or health, and increase the risk of suicide and domestic violence, the report said. The committee found that even people who did not qualify as having a gambling disorder were harmed, including recreational gamblers and relatives of gambling addicts.
The report highlights the role online gambling plays in the rising availability of commercial gambling across the board. It points to legal US sports betting apps such as DraftKings or FanDuel as well as online casinos and slot machines as examples.
“Accessibility is now 24/7,” said council researcher Heather Wardle, professor of urban studies, social policy and health at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. “They can serve ads to you and they know you will respond. It makes it difficult to switch off…any more gambling opportunities will do more harm.”
A representative for FanDuel said it “fully supports a regulated market that protects customers and generates significant tax revenue for states” and that it “helps guide ongoing discussions across the industry to prioritize the creation of best practices that protect customers.” ”
The platform offers users the ability to set limits on their deposits, bets and time spent on its app, as well as the option to self-exclude further bets.
DraftKings, which declined to comment, offered similar protections. Its website advises users to “always set reasonable limits” and advises people to “avoid playing the game if you are recovering from any dependence.” Both companies comply with state regulations.
In its report, the Lancet Commission criticized governments around the world for paying too little attention to the harms of gambling and for failing to implement adequate gambling-related public health protection measures. The authors recommend that leaders adopt policy frameworks that place the onus on gambling businesses rather than gamblers to minimize harm.
Their recommendations include limiting gambling opportunities and advertising, developing marketing campaigns about the consequences of gambling and providing stronger support for people who have suffered harm. The authors also call on governments to implement and enforce minimum age requirements and betting restrictions.
The report notes that states and countries have already taken such measures. For example, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Ontario have different restrictions on gambling advertising, including online gambling. Germany restricts opening hours of land-based casinos. Spain, Sweden and Norway have mandatory loss limits for online betting. In Massachusetts, Illinois, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, a portion of in-state operator revenue goes toward gambling rehabilitation funds.
Alan Feldman, director of strategic initiatives at the International Gaming Institute at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, who did not join the committee, said many of the safeguards recommended in the report already exist.
But he said he believed some of the regulations “represent a misunderstanding of what responsible gambling means.”
“There has to be a level of personal responsibility or treatment is not going to work,” said Feldman, who has worked at MGM Resorts for nearly 30 years and is chairman emeritus of the industry-funded International Council for Responsible Gambling. . “You have to make the decision to gamble rest with the customer. That is, everyone in the ecosystem has a role to play in it – game manufacturers, governments, jurisdictions, treatment providers.”
He added that most of the new report’s findings “have long been known and frequently discussed.”
one Comments posted last year Studies have found that people who engage in online sports betting have higher rates of substance abuse disorders and psychological distress. The research also suggests that gambling advertising may contribute to the development of gambling problems. one 2015 Paper Found that online gambling may lead to the development or exacerbation of gambling problems.
In recent years, some state problem gambling centers have Reports increased calls received Call their helpline. However, Feldman said the increase in the number of gamblers seeking help in the United States may be due to greater access to mental health resources.
“We’re experiencing this change in attitudes toward mental health, driven in part by technology. Now, you or I can find a counselor about anything, including gambling, in about 60 seconds,” he said.
But Wardle insists the expansion of commercial gambling poses a threat.
“We know gambling can cause very serious harm to an individual’s health and can be an addictive behaviour,” she said. “Our proposals are very focused on prioritizing health protection and then putting in place a very strong regulatory system that can protect public health while still allowing gambling to take place.”
