The rate of young men contacting Ontario’s mental health helpline for gambling-related problems has increased by more than 300 per cent after the province allowed private online gambling, a new study suggests.
The researchers behind the study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal on Monday say the findings represent a need for stronger harm-reduction measures and more access to treatment.
The study analyzed the number of contacts to ConnexOntario, the province’s free 24-hour mental health and addictions helpline, for gambling-related concerns from January 2012 to September 2025.
It noted an increase after January 2015, when the government launched the gambling platform PlayOLG, as well as after the province expanded private online gambling in April 2022.
Over the 13-year period researchers looked at, ConnexOntario was contacted more than 745,700 times, the study said, and about 37,000 of those contacts were gambling-related.
Concordia University researchers and professors recreated a casino experience to study the impact of these environments on gambling and decision-making. The goal is to help those regulating the industry prevent problematic gambling.
The study found that among boys and men aged 15 to 24, the mean monthly rate of gambling-related outreach per million people rose by 317 per cent from the time before Ontario’s launch of PlayOLG to the period after the privatization of online gambling.
The rate increased about 108 per cent over the same time frame for men aged 25 to 44, the study further found. Prior to the policy changes, the rates were stable, it said.
Doctor voices caution on ads
While better awareness of the hotline could be a factor, the spike may not be solely explained by people seeking help for existing problems, said Dr. Daniel Myran, a research chair at North York General Hospital who co-authored the study.
With the rise of sports betting, experts warn the prevalence of sports-betting ads are putting Canadians at risk โ especially young people. CBCโs Sheehan Desjardins speaks with pediatric addictions specialist Dr. Shawn Kelly about why youth are โuniquely vulnerableโ to these ads.
Myran noted there has been a higher volume of gambling marketing since the privatization of betting in the province.
“I think that we need to think very carefully about who these ads are reaching and the messages that they’re conveying. And I think we need move to place restrictions on them because they’re right now occurring in venues that are widely seen by youth,” he said.
“When we see that the visits or the contacts have really gone up in young men, I think that this is exactly who’s being targeted by the advertisements and who’s going to be placing sports bets.”
Ad restrictions exist: regulator
The study further found that between the dawn of online gambling privatization in April 2022 and August of last year, the number of active player accounts per 100,000 people aged 15 or older increased from roughly 2,160 to more than 7,300 โ a 239 per cent increase.
Myran added there are concerns around micro-betting and other types of gambling that are associated with higher risk of addiction.
“Let’s say that you bet on the outcome of the Super Bowl. It’s one bet that you’ve made. … But you can now actually bet on events that occur within the game itself,” he said.
“That means that if you lose money, you might do what’s called loss chasing, where you try and re-wager it to win more, and it can really accelerate people into gambling disorders.”
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, which regulates the online gambling market, said the province has “some of the strongest advertising and promotional rules in North America.”
They include restrictions on athletes and celebrities in public-facing gambling ads, and limiting the promotion of bonuses to an operator’s own website, it said.
“Within the regulated market, the AGCO requires operators to meet strict standards, including actively monitoring player behaviour, identifying signs of risk or harm, and intervening with tailored supports when concerns arise,” the agency said in a statement.
Self-harm consequences
Ultimately, the study’s findings underscore why gambling disorders need to be treated as a public health issue and treatment should be readily available, said Myran.
“Gambling can have really severe consequences to individuals. People who have gambling disorders are really at high risk of mental health conditions including self-harm and suicide,” said Myran.
“It can also have much broader impacts on families and communities around them,” he added. “I think that we have not adequately considered how some of the changes that have occurred may have much broader health implications for society.”
That the study’s length dates back to the early days of online gambling is a strength, said Dr. Luke Clark, director of the Centre for Gambling Research at the University of British Columbia.
Clark, who was not involved in the study, noted that while other provinces offer online gambling through their provincial operators, the advertisements for the Ontario-licensed operators have been broadcast all across Canada.
“Itโs an important question to what extent these findings are mirrored in the other provinces or could be more specific to Ontario,” Clark said. “We donโt know yet.”
Avin De, 22, said he learned to play poker and blackjack by age 12.
“I’ve always been too scared to actually put any money into it,” said De, a fourth-year Rotman commerce student at the University of Toronto. He wrote a 2025 opinion piece on the draw of online gambling for the Varsity.
“In my peer circles, I definitely see it more talked about online,” De said. “But nobody really brings up when they’ve lost or even when they’ve won.”
De also called for more regulation to try to prevent the problem from deepening, pointing to the rise of prediction markets to bet on much more than just sports.
