Seniors face risk when gambling

The thrill lures them in, but then it can become an overwhelming urge.
PROVIDENCE JOURNAL
NEWPORT, R.I. -- She swore she'd never play the slots. Eventually, she allowed herself to play, but only with quarters. Soon she was contemptuous of any machines that didn't let her bet up to $100.
Then one day, Maureen Holland walked out of a casino having lost more than she ever had before -- $5,000.
"I looked in the mirror and felt like an old lady," the Smithfield, R.I., resident said.
Holland was in her 60s and, according to experts, serves as a modern example of how the elderly develop gambling problems. She had risen to the rank of colonel in the Army, but after she retired she wasn't sure what to do with her life.
"I really became depressed. I felt, 'Wow, I'm getting old.' I'm used to jumping out of choppers. It was a big void," Holland said. "One day, I put my money in a slot machine, and it was like an instant addiction. I won."
Dennis McNeilly, a psychiatry professor from the University of Nebraska Medical School, said people over 65 are "particularly vulnerable" to developing a gambling problem.
Casinos offer perks
As they struggle with boredom and loss in their lives, he said, casinos lure them with cheap food, free oxygen-tank refills, flu shots, pharmacies and convenient bus trips.
Holland, a 69-year-old part-time nurse, said she sought treatment and hasn't gambled in two years.
McNeilly said many older adults find themselves confronted with painful emotional issues. Work no longer defines their lives. Their health may be deteriorating. Many have lost loved ones and longtime friends.
While "most people navigate these changes well ... problem gamblers may not," McNeilly said.
Gambling -- including bingo, lotteries and slots -- offers opportunities for socializing, entertainment and excitement. And casinos offer an environment that is attractive, along with ATMs and credit-card service that makes cash readily available.
"It's one of the few places that is very safe ... where age doesn't make any difference," McNeilly said. "It's very friendly."
Marketing strategies
The casinos also are savvier at marketing, he said. Swipe-cards given to gamblers to store credit and to offer perks for frequent use also compile information about a guest's gambling habits.
McNeilly said there were no statistics on gambling by older adults. National studies have estimated that 1 to 4 percent of the general population has a gambling problem.
But older adults, who tend to fall for sweepstakes trickery and other scams, may also be more susceptible to problem gambling, McNeilly said. Research indicates that a part of the brain that affects risky behavior may be more affected by aging than other brain functions, and that older adults more quickly develop a serious problem than younger adults; in as little as one to three years.
McNeilly listed several indicators of problem gambling among older adults: gambling at the beginning of the month, when Social Security checks arrive; neglecting family and friends; secrecy; disappearing assets; unexplained time away from home; and moodiness.