For better or for worse, most people are now introduced to gambling from the time when they’re very young.  Fast food restaurants like McDonald’s often have promotions similar to scratch cards where you can win free food or larger prizes.  Many kids grow up watching their parents have weekly card games with friends in which money is won or lost.  For some families, watching to see if the lotto numbers drawn match the ticket in your dad’s hand is an evening ritual.

Nowadays shows like “Celebrity Poker Showdown,” easy-to-join online poker games, and high profile celebrities like Ben Affleck winning high stakes games have put gambling back in the spotlight. 

As fun and innocent as it all seems, it is still gambling and many young people today don’t realize that.  Gambling is not just going down to the race track and betting on horses or taking your life savings down to the casino and betting on blackjack and slot machines all night. Gambling is any time you risk your money or other valuables in a game of chance.

You might be tempted to reply “But it’s just a game!” and in some ways you’d be right.  But games can be very dangerous, especially if you aren’t aware of the full consequences.  When gambling gets out of control it can ruin a person’s life.  An addiction to gambling can be just as strong as any chemical addiction and a sufferer will stop at nothing to get their “high.”  Many problem gamblers have said that they started gambling in their teens with scratch cards or bets on sporting events.

Just be sure that the next time one of your friends says to you, “Oh yeah?  How much you willing to bet on that?” your answer is “nothing.”  Your friends will follow your lead.