Drinking while gambling affects sports bettors the most

A new joint study by the University of New Mexico and associate professor Joshua B. Grubbs and his colleague from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas has taken a look into the drinking habits of gamblers all over the country, finding out that sports bettors are the ones who are the likeliest to be affected by imbibing alcohol while gambling.

For starters, sports bettors are also likelier to be drinking while betting. The study is based on an interview of 4,300 adults in the United States, who were asked about their sports betting and drinking behavior. The results indicate that sports bettors tend to take drinking as part of the ritual of watching sports and placing a wager, and therein lies the issue explains Grubbs who argues that this tendency could lead to reckless spending or even problem gambling.

"With sports gambling in particular, it tends to appeal to young men -- and we already know from past research that watching sporting events is associated with drinking more -- it's the common American hobby of you watch the game, toss back a few beers with your friends," Grubbs explained, arguing that people tend to drink and bet in companies as it has always been, but now with the newfound power of wagering on the outcome of events.

Sports gamblers tend to also drink more than other gamblers, with gamblers generally considered more frequent drinkers in general. He explains part of the problem not just with the ritualistic and ingrained nature of watching sports and throwing back a few brews, but also because many of the participants are young men who tend to be more impulsive.

Grubbs has also argued that there is still a serious underfunding of efforts to understand problem gambling better and address gambling addiction at a time when the problem is clearly going to become more pronounced. Federal funding for the issue has indeed been lacking.

Sports gamblers the study found out, were almost 2 times more likely to practice binge drinking, especially around the time of sports events and while betting on competitions. Out of the 4,300 people interviewed, 1,800 said they were sport bettors.

The research was also backed by the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and led by Shane W. Kraus who is a psychology professor at the university. Kraus was immediately concerned about the findings and said that there is need for greater awareness and better education of young people to understand the risks associated with gambling and how they can be overcome.

Worse still, sports bettors tended to binge drink at a time when they would need their better judgement the most – during live sporting events. The research is the newest definitive proof that excessive alcohol use could have a particularly adverse impact on gamblers and sports bettors in particular.

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