According to a fascinating new study carried out by researchers at University College Dublin, children as young as nine years of age in Ireland are gambling. They report explains that children frequently watch their parents gambling online and they know the best slots to play with the colours and fun element drawing children in.
The study, entitled Playing Social Roulette: The Impact of Gambling on Individuals and Society in Ireland, showed that up to 400,000 people in Ireland are currently addicted to gambling.
Commenting on the findings, researcher Dr Crystal Fulton said that these addictions are starting in the home, where children are being exposed to gambling by members of their family. The proof of this is seen in one particular statistic of the study, claiming that the number of teen gamblers is two to three times greater than the amount of adult gamblers.
The team behind the study is now calling on for a National Gambling Strategy, which would ideally include new laws to stop gambling taking an even firmer hold on our young people.
These figures are very concerning indeed, and we hope that the Irish Government will take these suggestions on board.
