Thursday, February 08, 2007

With the increase in casinos, lottery games and TV coverage of professional
poker tournaments, it's not a surprise that the culture of gambling has
spread to teens.
Now, there are data to support what local kids have been saying - that kids
in the mid-Hudson have increased gambling as much as teens across the
country.
A recent study of teen risk factors among students in the eighth, 10th and
12th grades in Middletown showed that more than 73 percent had gambled
within the past year. The findings remain on par with a similar survey at
Newburgh Free Academy, said researcher Danette Shepard. State and national
figures show a 25 percent increase in gambling among teens since 1988. "This
younger generation, their whole lives they've been growing up with gambling
commercials. You know, 'You've got to be in it to win it,' " said Roslyn
Jefferson, director of the Center for Problem Gambling in Albany. "That
makes them more open to gambling, because society allows it." The Middletown
study found kids are doing more than just playing Texas Hold 'Em. The survey
of nearly 1,000 Middletown students shows kids gamble on everything from
sports to dice, from the lottery to games of skill. In Middletown, what kids
bet on differs with age. The eighth- and 10th-graders seem to prefer betting
on sports, while seniors play the lottery, restricted by law to those 18 and
older. Betting on cards tends to increase as kids get older, jumping from 24
percent to more than 33 percent by the 12th grade, the survey showed. Not
enough school officials are aware of the problem, Jefferson said. "I want to
see it included in health-education classes when they teach drug education,
so that kids can see that this could be a problem for some of their buddies
and even for themselves." Middletown school Superintendent Ken Eastwood did
not question Shepard's findings, but said administrators have not seen, on
school grounds, the type of card- or dice-playing mentioned in the survey.
Nonetheless, the school intends to implement a gambling education program
into its curriculum, possibly this spring, with part of a three-year, $5.4
million federal grant to improve student health and school safety, he said.
Studies show that adult problem gamblers started the habit at 10 or 11 years
old, and that they become introduced to gambling through family members,
Jefferson said. And kids who gamble are more likely to engage in other risky
behaviors, such as drug use, unprotected sex and joining gangs, experts
said. "Teens, especially male teens, are already at risk to take risks, so
they are more vulnerable than adults to become preoccupied with gambling,"
Jefferson said. "And that's what parents need to be aware of."

Most kids who gamble tend to play cards, sometimes with the consent of their
parents, Jefferson said. Parents who allow card playing at home should
encourage gambling for chips rather than money, and should look for signs
that their children are pushing off other activities and interests for the
activity, she said.

A federal law passed last summer has helped curb the problem of Internet
gambling among teens by making it illegal for major banks to allow the use
of their credit cards for payment, Jefferson added.

But while education about the risks of gambling could deter some kids, it
likely will not be effective without a larger social campaign about the
potential addiction.

"We have to do some kind of intervention, but it's awfully tough when
millions of dollars are being thrown into advertising every day to keep
these kids gambling," Eastwood said.