How sports betting is hooking some young men

Ahead of Monday’s NCAA men’s basketball final, much of the news coverage focused on two overlapping dynamics: 1) what bets to make and 2) how the rise of sports betting is causing damage.

According to Isaac Rose-Berman, a fellow at the American Institute for Boys and Men, the skyrocketing popularity of sports betting is a burgeoning public health crisis, especially for young men.

While men and women are roughly equally represented at the casino, with “sports betting you’re talking, you know, 85-90% of the users” are men, according to Isaac.

That results in two problems from a public health perspective: the financial cost, which can lead to depression, anxiety, and even suicide, and the compulsive behavior that pulls people out of their normal lives.