gambling addiction news stories on Newser

Coming Soon: Drug to Treat Gambling Addicts?

Evann Gastaldo — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 11:05:44 CST

Why are some stock traders and gamblers so willing to take financial risks? A new study shares a possible answer: Scientists found that people with higher levels of the neurotransmitter norepinephrine in a critical part of the brain related to sensory and reward systems are less sensitive to the pain...

Gambling Debt May Have Led to Bronco's Suicide

Kevin Spak — Thu, 02 Dec 2010 08:34:05 CST

Kenny McKinley had a gambling problem and deep debts as a result when he took his own life in September, investigators looking into the wide receiver’s death discovered. One fellow Bronco, backup quarterback Tom Brandstater, told investigators he’d lent McKinley $65,000 to pay down $40,000 he owed a...

Stock Fraudster Sentenced to... Play Poker?

Kevin Spak — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 10:24:20 CDT

A New Mexico stockbroker who confessed to stealing money from his clients so he could gamble has been ordered to… continue gambling. Samuel McMaster allegedly stole $400,000 from his elderly victims, but a judge has allowed him to go free, provided he can win it all back in poker...

Why Gamblers Can't Walk Away

Nick McMaster — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 16:55:00 CST

Scientists have unlocked a key to obsessive gambling—the lure of the near miss. In search of the reason gamblers keep playing even after strings of horrible losses, Cambridge University researchers examined the brains of gamblers. They found that a near miss—putting a bet on a horse that finished...

Eat Your Way Out of Addiction: Experts

Michael Roston — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 20:14:28 CDT

Good grub may be enough to rewire an addict's brain. The trick is to serve up meals that revive pleasure-inducing neurotransmitters disrupted by addiction, neuroscientists say. Foods as simple as steak, milk, and nuts can boost the brain's production of serotonin or glutamine, both of which help addicts recover. But...

Donaghy Gets 15 Months in Gambling Rap

Kevin Spak — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 12:37:53 CDT

Tim Donaghy was sentenced to 15 months in prison today for his role in the NBA gambling scandal, the Sporting News reports, a step down from the 27-33 months recommended by federal guidelines. Donaghy’s lawyers argued that the disgraced referee—who admitted to betting on games he officiated in pleading...

Gambler Sues Casinos for $20M

Harry Kimball — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 05:30:00 CDT

A former New York attorney is suing seven casinos for $20 million, claiming they helped woo her to the tables, and let her continue to play and lose despite an obvious gambling addiction. Workers at Atlantic City and Las Vegas gambling dens should have stopped her from blowing $1 million...

FBI Names Rogue NBA Ref

Wesley Oliver — Sat, 21 Jul 2007 14:39:19 CDT

The FBI has officially blown the whistle on an NBA referee accused on illegal gambling. The feds are investigating claims that over the past two years veteran Tim Donaghy officiated a number of games on which he or his associates had placed bets—which might have totaled thousands of dollars....

FBI Probes Gambling Ref

Sam Biddle — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 20:00:00 CDT

The FBI is investigating an NBA referee accused of manipulating point spreads in games he officiated as part of a wider mob-orchestrated gambling ring, the New York Post reports. The official allegedly both reffed and placed bets on numerous games from 2005 to 2007 in a desperate attempt to pay...