Canada’s gambling activity is ranked seventh in the top ten gambling countries in the world from the amount of money lost per adult. This is the wake-up call that all Canadians need. The fact that Canada is ranked seventh in the world for gambling from money lost per adult demonstrates a flaw with our country’s gambling system.
According to CBC, Canada earns $13 billion a year from gambling. This amount is more than what Canada earns from movies, hockey tickets and Tim Horton’s combined. The average Canadian adult loses $568 a year to gambling. Also, according to debitcardcasino.ca, 75 percent of Canadians take part in some form of gambling regularly. This means about 28 million people are gambling regularly.
There are over 100 casinos in Canada and hundreds of online poker sites. This makes gambling really accessible since there are so many casinos around and with the click of a button on a phone, a person can gamble. People can also get lottery tickets from convenience stores, which is another form of gambling. There are 7592 convenience stores all over Canada. These multiple locations for physical gambling and all the websites for online gambling make gambling very accessible.
Now let’s take a look at the mental and physical effects of gambling. Gambling may lead to a severe addiction. When gambling, the brain releases major doses of dopamine. Dopamine excites our brain and provides a feel-good feeling that makes the person want to keep on gambling.
That person can also become depressed from losing so much money to gambling and become disheartened. Another mental effect is suicide and suicidal thoughts. This can come from going bankrupt from gambling too much money and becoming homeless. The person not having enough money to gamble or losing too much money to gambling can cause them to become aggravated and irritated which can sometimes lead to family break-up.
Some of the best ways to prevent the gambling addiction are to look out for signs. Signs to look for in a person if they have a gambling addiction are: they can’t stop thinking about and/or talking about how to make more money from gambling, they feel irritated when they aren’t gambling, and they always want to increase the amount of money they gamble with to increase their thrill.
If you or another person shows these signs you can try prevention methods such as practicing a hobby that you enjoy as much as gambling, go to a support group, and find friends and/or family to talk to. The most expensive option to help with a gambling addiction is to get professional help.
I believe that the Government of Canada will help solve this nation wide problem. A way that the government can help to prevent gambling addiction is to decrease the number of casinos in Canada and replace them with other buildings that are better for the community such as libraries, community centres and outdoor pools. Also, the price of lottery tickets can be increased so people won’t be as inclined to buy them because of the high price. Online poker sites and casinos should also have limits on how much money can be used to gamble per month so people cannot go on gambling sprees. These are a few ideas to lead Canadian’s to better mental health around gambling.
Canadians gamble more than we realize and restrictions may need to be put in place, gambling is too accessible and gambling can destroys a person’s life through bankruptcy, homelessness, assault, easily aggravation, suicide and depression. Gambling is an okay thing to do here and there, but when it becomes a regular habit that can’t be controlled, that is when it becomes a real issue.
Don’t let gambling guide Canadians.
Sources
- “Gambling in Canada so Prevalent the Country Ranks among World’s Top 10.” Debit Card Casino, February 27, 2019. https://debitcardcasino.ca/2019/02/27/canada-top-10-gambling/.
- “Gambling on Addiction: How Governments Rely on Problem Gamblers – Episodes – The Fifth Estate.” CBCnews. CBC/Radio Canada, December 8, 2017. http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/m_episodes/2017-2018/gambling-on-addiction-how-governments-rely-on-problem-gamblers.
- “Effects of Problem Gambling on the Gambler.” ProblemGambling | Effects of Problem Gambling on the Gambler. Camh. Accessed July 9, 2021. http://www.problemgambling.ca/gambling-help/gambling-information/effects-of-problem-gambling-on-gambler.aspx.
