THURSDAY, Sept. 17, 2026 (HealthDay News) — More people are seeking emergency help for gambling problems in the face of expanded online betting markets, a new study says.
ER visits for gambling disorders nearly doubled following the legalization of single-event sports betting and expansion of online gambling markets in Ontario, researchers reported Sept. 15 in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
“Most people experiencing gambling problems will never seek care, so the concern is that the increases in ED visits for gambling disorders we observed may be revealing much larger increases in gambling-related harm,” senior researcher Dr. Daniel Myran said in a news release. He’s research chair at North York General Hospital in Toronto.
Canada legalized sports betting in August 2021, and in April 2022, Ontario became the first Canadian province to allow private companies to operate regulated online gambling markets, researchers said in background notes.
Ontario’s current online gambling market includes 83 gaming and betting sites operated by 43 private companies, including some of the world’s largest multinational gambling corporations, researchers said.
For this new study, researchers tracked ER visits for gambling disorders before and after the expansion of gambling in Ontario, covering a 14-year period.
During the study, 757 people had a total of 952 ER visits that identified a gambling disorder as a primary reason for the visit, researchers said.
By the end of the study, ER visits related to gambling problems were two and a half times higher among males 10 to 29 years old, and more than doubled among men 30 to 44, results showed.
More than 70% of gambling disorder visits involved another mental health problem or substance use, and nearly one-third led to hospital admission, researchers found.
“The concentration of the increase among younger males is particularly concerning given the rapid growth and promotion of online sports betting, which target this demographic,” lead researcher Ryan Forrest, a University of Toronto doctoral student, said in a news release.
“The consequences of rising gambling involve not just harm to people who are gambling but wider effects on families and communities,” Forrest said.
People with gambling disorders often avoid seeking help or treatment out of fear of stigma or shame, making the steep increase in ER visits even more concerning, Myran said.
“Data from Ontario provide an important caution about the potential harms that can accompany rapid expansion of online gambling,” Myran said.
Other regions weighing the expansion of gambling should consider the study's findings, researchers added.
In July, Alberta became the second Canadian province to let private operators offer online gambling, and other regions of Canada are considering or facing pressure to follow suit, Myran added.
“Jurisdictions considering expanding or offering online gambling through private operators should carefully weigh these potential risks and, if proceeding, consider additional safeguards, including restrictions on marketing and higher-risk forms of gambling, alongside better recognition and treatment of gambling-related harms,” Myran concluded.
More information
The American Psychiatric Association has more on gambling disorders.
SOURCE: Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences, news release, Sept. 16, 2026