Development of Lower-Risk Gambling Guidelines

• Main Author: Young, Matthew
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: Digital Scholarship@UNLV 2019
• Subjects: public heath; lower-risk gambling; gambling harms; harm reduction; Health Policy; Health Psychology; New Zealand; Norway; Iceland
• Online Access: https://digitalscholarship.unlv.edu/gaming_institute/2019/May28/68

Objectives: Using the same collaborative, evidence-driven approach that produced Canada’s Low Risk Alcohol Drinking Guidelines, this project aims to develop a workable set of national Lower-Risk Gambling Guidelines (LRGGs) with clear quantitative limits describing when level of gambling involvement is more likely to result in individual harms. These guidelines will help people make informed decisions about their gambling. Methods: In April 2016, a scientific working group was formed and tasked with synthesizing available evidence from two Canadian and eight international population datasets (from the United States, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, France, Australia, and New Zealand) on the relationship between gambling involvement (i.e., frequency, expenditure, and duration) and gambling related harms (i.e., financial, relationship, emotional, and physical harms). A national advisory committee, including partners from government and industry, was formed to review the evidence and oversee the development of the LRGGs. Results: In late 2018, preliminary LRGGs were developed, presented and discussed with a team of international collaborators and the national advisory committee. These preliminary limits will be presented. A final technical report detailing the final guidelines, the evidence that informed their development, limitations, and essential contextual factors will be published in March 2020.