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Upping the ante: Gambling in Canada

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Whether buying lottery tickets, visiting casinos or participating in hockey pools, Canadians are gambling more than ever before. In 2004, Canadians bet a total of $12.4 billion-more than a fourfold increase from the $2.7 billion wagered in 1992.

Games of chance have always been played in Canada. In 1900, raffles became a fixture in many communities after the Criminal Code was changed to allow fundraising for charity. Ten years later, racetrack betting was also legalized.

In the 1990s, provincial governments legalized permanent casinos and video lottery terminals (VLTs), starting the most recent gambling surge. Since then, gambling has become a revenue source for governments, generating profits of $5.0 billion in 2004-a rise of almost three times in one decade. In 2004, about 54,000 people worked in the gaming industry, with 86% holding full-time positions. About half were women.

Chart: Net revenues, government-run gamblingWith the ever-increasing number of gaming venues available, adult Canadians upped their average annual expenditure from $128 to $477 from 1992 to 2003. These expenditures account for 5.6% of total government revenue in all provinces.

Studies have indicated that excessive betting is often linked with a number of social and health-related problems, including alcohol dependence, relationship problems, depression and high levels of stress.

The 2002 Canadian Community Health Survey estimated that 1 in 20 Canadian adults were at risk of experiencing a problem with gambling, or were problem gamblers. More than half of all problem gamblers tried to quit in the previous year but could not, while one in five had contemplated suicide-six times the proportion of non-problem gamblers.