With the digital revolution, online casinos and sports betting have also become a big market. An estimated 80 million people in the world suffer from gambling disorder, of which the largest number are teenagers.
Researchers call for stronger global regulatory controls to reduce its impact. According to research published in The Lancet Public Health Commission on Friday, the game-like design of online gambling advertisements and the lure of easy money are the main reasons for getting attracted towards them.
Researchers found that approximately 448.7 million adults worldwide have experienced high-risk gambling, which includes experiencing behavioral symptoms or harmful personal, social or health consequences of gambling. Of these, an estimated 80 million adults suffer from gambling disorders or problem gambling.
Online gambling has become quite easy
University of Glasgow Prof. Anyone with a mobile phone can play at an online casino any time, 24 hours a day, says Heather Wardle. Big companies are using many such technologies to connect most of the people quickly and this has created major health risks. Wardle said big technology companies are using a variety of technologies to engage more people more frequently that could pose significant health risks”
Considered to be associated with the risk of financial ruin
Powerful marketing and technology make it easy for people to start gambling, but it becomes difficult to quit or stop. Commercial gambling is considered to be associated with the risk of financial losses and financial ruin. It is also linked to physical and mental health problems, breakdown of relationships and families, suicide and domestic violence, increasing crimes against property and people, etc.
Research says that technology gambling will become easier to start and harder to stop in the future. If we delay, gambling and the harms caused by gambling will become even more widespread as a global phenomenon and will become much more difficult to deal with.
Now is the time to bring a new policy
Dr., Commissioner of Universitas Indonesia, called on policy makers to “take action to protect children from the harms of gambling”. They said that early exposure to gambling markedly increases the risk of developing a gambling disorder later in life. The Commission urged policy makers to consider gambling as a public health issue like alcohol and tobacco and come up with policies to protect the next generation from the harm caused by gambling.