Gambling
and Drinking Is a Losing Hand
Wagerers
take more risks, play longer when boozing it up
Drinking while gambling
is a bad bet.
That is the conclusion
of a group of new studies that indicate that gamblers take greater
risks and play longer when they are drinking, especially those with
gambling problems.
Meanwhile, gambling addicts
say they think of alcohol more often when they are winning. And
they are better able to recover from that addiction when they also
tackle their alcoholism, the studies find.
"Therapy needs to focus
on finding ways to break these over-learned or 'unconscious' associations
between winning and drinking," says Sherry Stewart, an associate
professor at Dalhousie University in Nova Scotia.
The findings, published
in a recent issue of Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental
Research, are striking in light of the fact that about
half of casinos serve free drinks.
At the same time, 82 percent
of Americans participated in some form of gambling in 2002, up from
61 percent in 1975, according to another study in the a recent issue
of the Journal of Gambling Studies.
Casino
Employees Trained to Deal With Drunk Patrons
Casino executives say
they take seriously the responsibility that comes with serving alcohol.
Most casino employees are trained to deal with drunk patrons, cutting
off their drinking and gambling privileges, and preventing them
from driving.
"The bottom line is that
anyone who appears to be past their limit, we won't let them gamble.
We want a fair game. We're not trying to make money off people being
intoxicated," says Rob Stillwell, a spokesman for Boyd Gaming Corp.,
which runs 12 casinos in five states.
But the tradition of serving
free drinks—legal at commercial casinos in Colorado, Iowa,
Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey and Nevada—has stood for
decades, and likely will not pass away.
"It's something that customers
have come to expect," Stillwell says, adding that casinos also often
give free meals and rooms to guests.
Still, gambling industry
leaders discount the significance of the new research, since much
of it applied only to pathological gamblers, who make up 1 percent
to 2 percent of the gambling population.
While Stewart admits that
the findings are still undergoing peer-review, that three of the
four studies focused on addicted gamblers, and that most of the
research was funded by gambling addiction recovery associations,
she says some of the findings do apply to general gamblers.
In one study, her team
brought 44 people into a simulated casino in a laboratory. Half
of them were problem gamblers and half were normal gamblers. Half
of each group was given moderate doses of alcohol, and all of them
gambled for up to 30 minutes, using video lottery terminals. The
gamblers with alcohol in their system played longer and doubled
their bets more frequently.
Gamblers
More Likely to Take Risks When Drinking
"Across the board for
everybody, gamblers are more likely to take risks when drinking.
But those with gambling problems took even greater risks," Stewart
says.
When asked if such findings
might persuade casinos to stop giving free drinks, American
Gaming Association President and Chief Executive Officer
Frank Fahrenkopf Jr. says it depends on the level of proof and guidance
from state authorities.
"If there's extensive
peer-reviewed research, it's clearly something that the industry
and state legislators should be looking at. Remember, casinos have
to be licensed," Fahrenkopf says. "But you know, the industry changes
when things have been shown to be wrong."
Always consult your physician
for more information.
Online
Resources
(Our Organization is not
responsible for the content of Internet sites.)
Alcoholism:
Clinical and Experimental Research
American
Cancer Society
American
Gaming Association
Circulation,
Journal of the American Heart Association
Journal
of Gambling Studies
Men's
Health Network
National
Council on Problem Gambling
National
Institutes of Health (NIH)
North
American Gaming Regulators Association
Psychosomatic
Medicine
|
March 2003
Wagerers
Take More Risks, Play Longer When Boozing It Up
Casino
Employees Trained to Deal With Drunk Patrons
Gamblers
More Likely to Take Risks When Drinking
Spare
Tire Gives Boys a Bumpy Health Ride
Venting
May Protect a Man's Heart
Online
Resources
In Other Men's Health
News:
Spare
Tire Gives Boys a Bumpy Health Ride
Boys who harbor a "spare
tire" of extra weight around their middle may have higher blood
pressure than girls of equal girth.
Further, as these chubby
boys grow into men, they are also at risk for ventricular hypertrophy—or
enlarged heart—a condition that can dramatically increase
their risk of heart attack as a middle-age adult, a new study says.
The study, published in
the journal Circulation, is among the first to
document a gender-specific weight risk link to high blood pressure
in children, the researchers say.
"What surprised us most
about our finding was that the problem existed in boys, but not
in girls," says lead author Dympna Gallagher, associate professor
of nutrition at the Obesity Research Center, St. Luke's Roosevelt
Hospital's Institute of Human Nutrition, in New York City.
According to pediatric
endocrinologist Dr. Ileana Vargas, the new study represents an important
step forward in understanding the long-reaching effects of weight
problems in children—as well as the influence of hormones
before puberty.
"Perhaps the same factors
that protect women against cardiovascular disease prior to menopause
may also help protect little girls in ways we have yet to discover,"
says Vargas, assistant clinical professor of pediatrics at Columbia
Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City.
Always consult your physician for more information.
Venting
May Protect a Man's Heart
Releasing emotion
may reduce risk of stroke and heart attack
Venting your anger may
actually be good for your health.
An American study says that occasionally expressing anger may offer
protection against stroke and heart disease. The research appears
in a recent issue of Psychosomatic Medicine.
The study of 23,522 men,
aged 50 to 85, found those with moderate levels of anger expression
had about half the risk of nonfatal heart attacks and a major reduction
in stroke risk compared to those who bottle up their anger.
For stroke, the study
found the risk of stroke decreased in proportion to increased levels
of anger expression.
Previous research suggests
chronic anger increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. However,
there are not many studies that investigate how different styles
of anger expression affect cardiovascular disease.
Always consult your physician
for more information.
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