You’ve probably been seeing the popular NCAA Basketball championship all over the media. This 68-team, history-rich tournament is a fan favorite for many things – the passion, the athleticism, the under-dog stories – but nothing speaks to march madness like gambling. “Odds”, “predictions”, “trends” are terms as synonymous with March Madness as they are with Vegas, but the real irony is that the area that is most affected and overlooked by March Madness (aside from your wallet), is your brain.
GAMBLING – A SERIOUS ISSUE
Your brain is affected a lot by gambling, actually. Twenty years ago nobody would even entertain the idea of a gambling addiction, like they would a drug or sex addiction, but studies show that the lot are similar in how they affect the brain. Review these statistics:
• It is estimated that around 2%-3% of people in America suffer from gambling addiction. That’s over 90 million people.
• It is estimated Americans spend more than $5 billion annually gambling.
• One study estimated that US problem gamblers owe, on average, between $55,000 and $90,000.
One of the most debilitating issues with a gambling addiction is its renewing nature. Many people overcome their gambling addiction are still left with the pile of debt, which, most of the time, is aimlessly whittled away with more gambling. It’s a vicious cycle because many gambling addicts feel that the only way they can pay off debt is by more gambling, even if their previous history shows that there is no return. So why is it so hard to drop the dice, or ignore the odds?
GAMBLING and YOUR BRAIN
When a drug addict uses their favorite drug, dopamine pours through the extracellular fluid of a part of the brain known as the nucleus accumbens, or pleasure center. The fresh batch of dopamine hitting the neural system creates the euphoric effect every drug user is after. The brain is wired to track the events that lead up to large amounts of dopamine, or reward, hitting the system. Just the anticipation of reward causes dopamine to be released in the accumbens, which helps motivate an individual’s behavior to accomplish whatever reward follows. This doesn’t sound so diabolical when you understand that this is natural process for all motivation in life; survival, hunger, procreation, goal-setting, social praise, exploration, etc., but where it takes a turn for the worst is when that reward is something destructive to physical, mental, emotional or financial well-being.
Another element of complexity is the dynamic nature of the nucleus accumbens and your body’s response to dopamine and chemical “rewards” in the brain. The more you reward the brain with certain behaviors, like drugs or gambling, for example, the more other natural rewards lose their effective reinforcing capability. In other words, food, love, friends, health, etc. literally become biologically less rewarding to a gambling addict. With every bet, or pull of the slot, gambling behavior is reinforced, and normal rewarding behavior is diminished.
SOLUTIONS
March 2014 is National Problem Gambling Awareness Month, and with that we’d like express our support for this true neurological issue. Neuroscience is always working to promote a better understanding of behaviors. If you suffer from extreme compulsive behavior, especially sudden and/or spontaneous, you may want to see a neurologist and possibly a brain surgeon. Countless cases have shown how brain tumors, especially in the right area of the brain, can significantly change and alter behavior. To learn more, or schedule a visit with Dr. Duma, please contact us online for a consultation or call (949) 642-6787 to reach out to us.
