Study Indicates Additional Disorders For Problem Gamblers

Problem gambling is a topic that is coming up a lot around the United States. With many states involved with expanding their casino gambling laws, problem gambling has been used as a tool for opponents of these new casinos.

A recent study released at the National Center for Responsible Gaming's ninth annual conference on Gambling and Addiction in Las Vegas suggests that it is not only gambling that these addicts have a problem with.

The study claims that over ninety six percent of people with a gambling problem at some point in their life suffer from another psychiatrio or substance abuse disorder. That means that the problem gambling is not necessarily due just to the casinos, but the temperament of the individual.

"What this study shows is that problem gambling is just another form of a more serious psychiatric disorder. People that become problem gamblers have most likely had addictions in the past, and the gambling is just another form of their addictive personalities," said Bruce Aria, after reading the latest volume of "Increasing The Odds".

For years opponents of casinos have pointed to the effects it may have on problem gamblers. They claimed that gambling can be addicting and that casinos actually encourage problem gambling.

The study released at the conference indicates a different result. Pathological gamblers also have been found to have mood and anxiety disorders. "If the behavior is one that is being repeated, then the cause is not always the problem, the addiction is," said Aria.

November 19, 2008
Posted By Larry Rutherford
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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