Youth gamblers on the rise

"It is a situation where many parents still do assume that it's better for a kid to be gambling than to be out on the streets doing drugs or whatever," says Dr. Rachel Volberg, president of Gemini Research, which specializes in gambling studies in Northampton, Mass.

The primary risk is that kids can get so caught up in the thrill that they begin to gamble regularly. Eventually, they start risking money that they don't have - and losing it. When that starts, they're called problem gamblers, and the consequences include what doctors diagnose as depression as well as criminal behavior, according to the National Council.

One student at a Midwest college wrote the National Council asking for help. He said he'd started playing online poker and is now $5,000 in debt. His e-mail continued: "I want to quit gambling but at the same time I have to make the $5,000 back [because] I don't have it and it was written through IGM echecks. I think that could be considered a felony for writing bad checks. Any suggestions?"

Researchers are also beginning to believe that gambling is a "gateway" activity to riskier behaviors. Indeed, kids who gamble are also much more likely to binge drink, smoke marijuana, skip school, and have unsafe sex, according to several studies cited by the National Council.

Experts would like to see media outlets that air gambling events also show public-service announcements or other types of advertisements that talk about gambling's potential health risks, list warning signs, and provide information about responsible gambling - such as setting limits, never gambling during anger or depression, and never gambling on credit.

Mr. Whyte says the council has offered the Discovery Channel, Bravo, NBC, and others free public-service announcements, but so far they've declined them. ESPN, however, has aired some PSAs that included the council's help number, 800-522-4700.

There are also resources on the Internet for parents and kids who are interesting in learning about the risks involved with gambling and the attendant warning signs. The North American Training Institute (NATI) in Duluth, Minn., has designed a Web magazine for kids to learn about the risks involved with gambling: www.wannabet.org. It also has resources for parents at www.nati.org.

NATI's executive director, Elizabeth George, says it's crucial for parents to learn the warning signs. "If the child talks about gambling as the most exciting and important thing in their life, if it's superseding other things like a girlfriend or hockey practice, or if he is missing other activities because he's gambling, it could be the sign of a problem," says Ms. George.

Other indications of a problem include: lying about whether they are gambling; using money to gamble that's supposed to be used for other things like a winter jacket; borrowing money to gamble or, in a worst case, stealing it; and letting schoolwork suffer.

"Parents have to get gambling on their radar screen, they have to say, 'Tell me about your gambling," says George.

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