Whether you’re watching TV, attending a footy game, or eating a meal at your local pub, gambling is difficult to flee. Although the rise of gambling will not be unique to Australia, it has change into normalised as an element of Australian culture.
While for some, gambling is perhaps a source of entertainment, for others, it might result in significant harms.
Gambling and mental illness
Research consistently shows gambling problems often occur alongside other common mental illnesses and substance use disorders. We see particularly strong links between gambling disorder and nicotine dependence, alcohol use disorders, mood disorders similar to depression, and anxiety.
In many cases, harms related to gambling result in poor mental health. But people experiencing mental illness are also at greater risk of experiencing gambling problems.
Gambling harms exist on a spectrum. For a while, there’s been a concentrate on those individuals who develop a gambling disorderwhere they’ve recurring problems with gambling, resulting in clinically significant distress and impairment of their every day life.
But we must also take a look at those that are on a unique a part of the spectrum, yet still experiencing gambling-related harms.
An individual won’t have a diagnosable gambling disorder, nevertheless they still may face problems of their life consequently of gambling. These can include problems of their relationships, financial debts, and negative effects on work or study. All these items can contribute to poor mental health.
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We’re told to ‘gamble responsibly’. But what does that really mean?
Gambling and suicide
Feelings similar to stress and isolation, possibly compounded by mental illness, may cause some individuals with gambling problems to feel like there’s no way out.
Research from different countries has shown that amongst people receiving treatment for problem gambling, between 22% and 81% have thought of suicide, and seven% to 30% have made an attempt.
Some 44% of Australian veterans experiencing gambling problems have thought of suicide, while almost 20% have made a suicide plan or attempt.
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A recent Victorian investigation into gambling-related suicides assessed records from the Coroners Court of Victoria between 2009 and 2016. The researchers found gambling-related suicides comprised at the very least 4% of all suicides in Victoria over this era, or around 200 suicides.
Gambling-related suicides were more more likely to affect males (83%) in comparison with total suicide deaths in Victoria over the identical period (75%). They were significantly more more likely to occur amongst those that were most disadvantaged.
The researchers note these statistics underestimate the true variety of gambling-related suicides. This is because, unlike for drugs and alcohol, at present there’s no systematic way gambling is captured as a contributing consider suicide deaths.
When we also consider the number of people that could have considered suicide, or survived a gambling-related suicide attempt, we are able to see the issue is more likely to be significantly larger than these statistics indicate.
Gambling is inherently dangerous
Electronic gaming machines, more commonly known in Australia as “pokies”, are the product most strongly related to harmful gambling. Evidence shows pokies alone are answerable for greater than half of all gambling problems in Australia.
Casino table games are equally dangerous, but in the overall population they contribute much less to problem gambling because fewer people play them.
While gambling itself comes with a level of risk, individual vulnerabilities can place certain people at even greater risk of harm. As well as individuals with mental illness, men are at higher risk of gambling problems than women. People who’re single or divorced are at higher risk in comparison with people who find themselves married. People with higher levels of income and education are at lower risk.
What can we do?
Angela Rintoul, the lead creator of the Victorian research mentioned above, this week published an article within the Medical Journal of Australia through which she argued gambling-related suicides are preventable.
She suggested health professionals could make it a part of their routine practice to ask easy questions like “previously 12 months, have you ever ever felt that you simply had an issue with gambling?”. Or, “has anyone commented that you simply may need an issue with gambling?”.
Rintoul also discussed strategies governments could adopt, similar to an entire ban on gambling promoting, and a universal account registration system to permit people to set limits on their gambling losses.
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To reduce gambling-related suicides, we want to see policy change. In June 2023, a cross-party committee presented a report with 31 recommendations to cut back harms from online gambling in Australia.
One of those recommendations was a comprehensive ban on online gambling promoting. But the federal government is yet to reply to the report.
Read more:
Celebrities, influencers, loopholes: online gambling promoting faces an uncertain future in Australia
Advice for individuals who gamble
For individuals who do decide to gamble, it’s vital to concentrate on the risks. Understand how gambling and poker machines really workand that they’re there to earn a living for venue owners, not to supply wins for players.
If you select to gamble, set limits on the amount of cash you’re willing to loose, or the period of time you’ll spend gambling. The Lower Risk Gambling Guidelines for Australians suggest following these three recommendations:
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gamble not more than 2% of your take-home pay
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gamble not more than once per week
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participate in not more than two several types of gambling.
If you notice you’re eager about gambling increasingly, or that it’s causing problems in any a part of your life, looking for help early is essential. Speak to your GP about how you may get some extra support, or visit Gambling Help Online.
If this text has raised issues for you, or in case you’re concerned about someone , call Lifeline on 13 11 14.