• Best Free Online Gambling Sites
• Online Gambling Youth Sports
• Online Gambling For Real Money
• Online Gambling Youth Organizations

Discuss gambling and its potential risks with your kids. Examine your own attitudes and habits around gambling. Remember, you are the most important role model for your kids.

Know where your kids are going online and what they're doing. Establish clear rules about what online games your children can play and keep Internet-connected computers in an open area, not in your children's bedrooms.

Take advice from the experts. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission advises parents to convey to their kids the following risks associated with online gambling:

You can lose your money. Online gambling operations are in business to make a profit. They take in more money than they pay out.

1. At the end of June 2018, the Gambling Commission made a series of commitments to protect children from the dangers of gambling, including looking at how children are exposed to it, the online risks.
2. Online Gambling and Youth Technically, a person needs to be 18 years of age to gamble online. Yet we have talked with teens as young as 12 years old who have bet real money online. How do they do it?

You can ruin a good credit rating. Online gambling generally requires the use of a credit card. If kids rack up debt online, they could ruin their credit rating - or their parent's.

In addition the OSDUHS found that gambling participation increases with age with a peak in participation in Grade 12 (5). Research has also found that there is an increasing number of youth that are gambling online and through social media for virtual currency and that doing so may lead to actual gambling activities for money (3). Given the ease of access and the allure that online gambling (and real world gambling) has on teens and college-age students, it is critical that youth (particularly males) and parents understand and discuss the risks to minors surrounding this activity.

Online gambling can be addictive. Because Internet gambling is a solitary activity, people can gamble uninterrupted and undetected for hours at a time. Gambling in social isolation and using credit to gamble may be risk factors for developing gambling problems.

Gambling is illegal for kids. Every state prohibits gambling by minors. That's why gambling sites don't pay out to kids and go to great lengths to verify the identity of any winner.

(Source: www.ftc.gov/opa/2002/06/onlinegambling.htm)

Need more information about online gambling in general? Check out this brochure from the Saskatchewan division of the Canadian Mental Health Association.
http://www.cmhask.com

For Internet Gambling Statistics

The results of the Annenberg Public Policy Center’s 2005 National Annenberg Risk Survey of Youth (NAESY) indicate that approximately 580,000 young people ages 14 to 22 gamble on the Internet on a weekly basis. Most of these young people are under age 21.

Best Free Online Gambling Sites

Our thanks to the Oregon Dept. of Health for permission to use their materials on youth poker.

Gambling means risking money or a valuable object in a game, contest or activity where the end result depends on chance. Gambling can take many forms, such as:

• Lotteries (e.g., Lotto 6/49, Lotto Max)
• Instant lotteries (scratch cards)
• Bingo
• Betting card games (in person or online) like poker or blackjack.
• Private sports betting/sports lotteries
• Casino games
• Video game terminals (includes slot machines available at restaurants)
• Online gambling
• Dice games

Do children and teens gamble?

Most Canadian teens say they have gambled at least once, either at home or at school. It’s important for parents to know when and how gambling can become a problem, and to be alert to a child’s habits.

• Children often start gambling with family members—buying lottery tickets, playing cards or bingo for money, or receiving lottery or scratch tickets as presents.
• Underage gambling is common in Canada and can start in children as young as 9 or 10 years old.
• As they get older, teens usually gamble more with their friends and classmates.
• Gambling problems are most common among boys.

Are there gambling laws in Canada?

Gambling in Canada is regulated by provincial and territorial governments. The legal gambling age ranges from 18 to 19, depending on the type of activity and the province or territory.

When is gambling a problem?

Gambling becomes a problem when a person:

• frequently spends more money than they meant to.
• plays for longer periods of time than planned.
• gambles instead of taking care of other responsibilities (doing things that will help them develop as teenagers).
• can’t stop thinking about gambling.
• has difficulty cutting down or stopping their gambling.

What are signs that my teen might have a gambling problem?

If you are concerned that your teen is gambling, be alert for:

• Physical changes: trouble sleeping, being tired or run down, eating less or more, and problems focusing on or remembering things.
• Emotional struggles: mood swings, depression, anxiety.
• Problems at school: falling grades, attendance or behavioural issues.
• Troubles in relationships with family or friends.
• Money problems or missing possessions, frequent job changes, asking to borrow money from family or friends, or a sudden increase in spending money.
• Substance abuse issues: alcohol consumption or using drugs.

How can I protect my teen from a gambling problem?

• Be involved. Talk with and listen to your teen about what they do with their friends, and the places they go.
• Set clear rules and consequences for your teen’s behaviour and stick to them.
• Limit or eliminate gambling activities at home and replace them with other family activities.
• Explain the risks of gambling activities to your teen.
• Lead by example. Your teen will learn from your gambling habits. If you talk about responsible gambling habits, such as playing with moderation and setting limits, your teen will be more likely to act responsibly towards gambling.
• Monitor your teen’s computer, personal electronic and gaming devices for gambling apps.

Where can I go for help?

Talk to your health professional. Many communities also have gambling hotlines and support programs and resources to help you get informed and seek help for your teen.

Online Gambling Youth Sports

Online Gambling For Real Money

Reviewed by the following CPS committees

Online Gambling Youth Organizations

• Adolescent Health Committee