According to a study carried out by the UK National Health Service (NHS) in 2018, English consumes too much alcohol, are overweight, don’t exercise, and gambles excessively.
The report further revealed that English love betting, 54 percent of adults said to have gambled at some point in the year. In the UK, a person is considered an adult if they are above the age of 16; a legal age to play the lottery is 16. The report found that 54 percent gambled while including the National lottery, but when excluded, the rate falls to 40 percent.
Since 2012, the NHS has included a gambling report in its annual reporting. In recent studies, the rate of gambling has significantly dropped when compared to previous years. In 2016, the gambling rate was slightly above 56 percent down from 62 percent in 2015. In the first NHS annual reporting in 2012, 68 percent of men and 61 percent of women were found to have gambled in the last 12 months period.
The report further found that online betting was popular among men, with 15 percent said to have used the platform and only 4 percent among women. NHS is advocating for gaming companies to reduce their advertisements, especially those targeting young adults due to the growing mental health issue. The most active group in gambling while excluding the National Lottery in the demographic are the youths. The rates of gambling were highest among those in the age of 24-25, followed by 35 to 44, and the next group was 45 to 54 years. UK Gambling Commission in February established new standards to bar online advertisements that target children and young adults.
According to Casino.org, the rate of gambling in the UK isn’t shocking when compared to other countries. For instance, in the US, it is estimated that two-thirds of adults gamble at least once per year. In Australia, it’s even worse; three in four adults gamble each year.
