Ahead of the holiday season, Prince William County, Virginia, is sounding the alarm about the risks of children gambling.

As part of a December campaign, county leaders are encouraging the community to avoid the urge to put a lottery ticket or scratch-off card into a child’s stocking. But they’re also speaking out about troubling trends, as video games online are increasingly using subtleties that resemble gambling behavior.

Access to and participation in gambling is growing at a rapid pace, according to Wendy Hunt, a wellness and prevention team supervisor with the county.

“We are seeing that rise in gambling-related suicides. To get ahead of the problem right before it becomes a problem for adults later on, we want to educate our youth early, so that they can have those skills and the abilities to manage their play before a problem occurs,” Hunt said.

The latest survey results indicate about one-fourth of 18 to 24-year-olds said they betted on sports, and 15% said they participated in lottery ticket games.

While even activities like a family bingo or poker night are thought of as innocent, Hunt said, “what it’s actually doing is introducing our youth to gambling behaviors.”

Digital games are doing that, too, she said, because things like microtransactions, loot boxes or spin-to-win concepts replicate real-life gambling behaviors.

“All these little things, what they’re doing is increasing the interest and the engagement in that, and it’s … teaching them how to put time and effort and virtual coin into things that are actually more chance-based or luck-based, and not actually skill, and so it builds into that gambling-type behavior,” Hunt said.

When a user is making a purchase with a virtual currency, Hunt said that results in a release of dopamine.

“It’s a similar reaction in our brain as it is to substance use,” she said.

To prevent kids from developing troubling habits, Hunt said there should be a set time limit for playing video games or being on a phone. It’s important, she said, to take walks, drink water and make sure kids are eating and drinking enough.

She added that t’s also essential to make it clear that online games and gambling is meant to be a fun activity, and isn’t a way to win back money to pay bills.

“Gambling can be fun and safe for many people, and it’s not going to be a problem for everyone, but it is going to be a problem for some,” Hunt said.

The Virginia program, which is being organized by the National Council on Problem Gambling and is backed by the North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries, will include a variety of initiatives, including retailer training and educational webinars.

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