adolescents-gambling addiction

Adolescents with gambling addiction triple in six years

SEOUL, Oct. 11 (Yonhap) -- The number of adolescents getting medical treatment for gambling addiction has nearly tripled so far this year compared with six years ago, data showed Wednesday.

A total of 111 people aged 19 or under have been treated for obsessive gambling from January to August this year, marking a 2.8-fold increase from 39 in 2017, according to the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service data released by Rep. Seo Dong-yong of the Democratic Party.

The figure has been on a steady rise since 2017, increasing to 65 in 2018, 93 in 2019, 98 in 2020 and 127 in 2021.

It posted a slight decline to 102 last year before rebounding to 111 in the first eight months of this year.

The number of adolescents receiving counseling for gambling-related issues came to 1,406 in the first eight months of this year, soaring about 28-fold from 52 in 2015, according to data released by Seo.

Last year, seven children aged 14 or under committed gambling crimes, compared with only one in 2017, according to the lawmaker.

Seo called on the government to step up prevention measures, saying "Adolescents are increasingly exposed to illegal gambling in their daily lives and don't take illegal gambling seriously."

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