Older Adult Gambling

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- Gambling Among Older Adults
Recreation with Risk?

"We have been retired two years and I just found out my husband has gambled away all of our retirement savings."
--A 88-year-old Helpline caller

Recreation?

For most older people, gambling is a social or recreational activity. It is fun and entertaining. It does not cause problems.

For those older people who choose to gamble recreationally, the following information is to help insure that their gambling does not lead to problems:

1.	Recreational gambling is most often combined with other activities and done socially with family, friends, or colleagues. Always gamble with others and not alone.

2..	Recreational gambling is done for limited amounts of time. Set limits on how often and for how long you gamble.

3.	Recreational gambling always has predetermined limits for loses that are acceptable. Remember money spent on gambling needs to be considered entertainment.

4.	Over time nearly everyone who gambles loses. The benefit of gambling is almost always recreational and rarely a financial gain.