Betting Britain: 4 in 10 children have gambled

ALMOST half of children aged between 11 and 16 say they have gambled in the past year, the largest study of its kind has found.

Fruit machines were the most popular form of gambling, followed by playing cards for money and buying scratchcards, Cardiff University academics said.

Placing a private bet among friends and buying lottery tickets underage were also among the top gambling activities.

Of the 41 per cent who said they had gambled in the past 12 months, 16 per cent said they felt bad as a result.

Boys were more frequent gamblers than girls, while youngsters from minority ethnic groups and marginalised pupils were also more likely to engage in wagers.

Dr Graham Moore, of the Centre for the Development and Evaluation of Complex Interventions for Public Health Improvement, which carried out the study, said gambling might be emerging as a ‘new public health issue’.

He added: ‘While over the past 20 years or so, lots of adolescent risk behaviours like smoking and drinking alcohol have become less common, we are seeing the emergence of new risk behaviours in today’s society.

‘The fact that there is widespread opportunity to gamble and limited education regarding its risks means that adolescents are particularly vulnerable to its harms.’

Researchers gathered data from more than 37,000 youngsters as part of the 2017 School Health Research Network Student Health and Wellbeing Survey.

Lead author Professor G.J MelendezTorres, who conducted the research at Cardiff University, said: ‘Problem gambling is associated with lower self-esteem, poorer school performance and an increased risk for other addictions, as well as feelings of guilt, shame and self-hatred.’