Investigation into gambling-related suicide data shows tracking of deaths lags while governments ignore risks to chase industry profits

With increased focus on gambling-suicide links in countries like Australia and the United Kingdom, and with strategizing at the federal level to reduce suicides overall, there is pressure on lawmakers to rethink Canada’s approach to GRS [gambling-related suicide]. Questions remain about whether provinces have done enough to track and prevent deaths.

Survey data released last week by the charitable research organization Mental Health Research Canada suggests 60 per cent of people at high risk of gambling problems reported that ads influenced them to gamble more.

The widespread cultural acceptance of legalized gambling is connected to viewing gambling as a personal choice, neglecting the addictive nature of the heavily-promoted gaming options and ignoring the dire financial and mental health consequences for those who become addicted — a view pushed through marketing and industry lobbying efforts.

This underlying risk seems at odds with the continued expansion and availability of legalized gambling across Canada, including legal single-sports betting in every province, two recently-opened casino resorts in the Greater Toronto Area, and more than 80 new legal online casinos in Ontario through its iGaming Ontario provincial agency.

  • kent_ehEnglish
    46·
    2 days ago

    They could start by banning advertising of sports betting.

    You can’t watch any sport for 2 minutes without having some sports betting site shoved in your face.

    • nyan@lemmy.cafeEnglish
      3·
      11 hours ago

      I would say the best way of dealing with this is to treat all gambling (including the flippin’ lotteries) like tobacco. Absolutely no advertising allowed. People who still want to find it will.

      • FireRetardant@lemmy.world
        2·
        9 hours ago

        Agreed. Even the big lotto 649 ads in my area are just so in your face like “what are you doing? Don’t you know a life of luxury and private yachts is as easy as buying a ticket”

    • VerdantSporeSeasoning
      11·
      1 day ago

      In the States, I was getting ads during election season letting me know that I could bet on the outcome of the election. It’s madness.

      • AJ1English
        2·
        1 day ago

        … so how much did you win or lose? I’d have won, because I’m from the US and I know how racist and sexist people are down there and I was betting on D-Bag from day 1. I was blown away when we elected Obama (or “O-Bummer”, as the repubes call him), and I remember thinking that they’ll never allow that to happen again-- especially if it’s also a woman

        • VerdantSporeSeasoning
          1·
          10 hours ago

          Not a gambler, I don’t think that money would feel right anyhow. There’s nothing about a trump presidency that should feel like a win.

          And yeah, I grew up hearing sermons about how women should never be in positions of power over men. And then there’s also the deep and abiding racism that’s been with us longer than the idea of democracy. I hoped enough people would see the bigger picture. But no, missed out on my chance to be rich I guess.

    • T00l_shed@lemmy.world
      18·
      2 days ago

      Not just sports with gambling ads, everything! I don’t watch sports and get gambling ads all the the time on YouTube.

    • streetfestivalOPEnglish
      14·
      1 day ago

      The deluge of sports betting ads, including ‘sponsored content,’ is a travesty. And we won’t know the effects on kids growing up in this new ads and access ecosystem for decades. Corporate profits before public health /s

    • wise_pancake
      5·
      1 day ago

      The Olympics on CBC were insufferable. All the ads were gambling and ozempic/wegovy ads.

      • Someone
        2·
        1 day ago

        Same on podcasts. I don’t even listen to anything related to sports.