Measuring Gambling Harm for Effective Policy

Governments worldwide promise to reduce gambling harm, but here's the problem: for years,

nobody could actually measure it properly. You can't reduce what you can't quantify. Recent scientific

breakthroughs changed everything. Researchers developed tools like the Short Gambling Harms Screen

that directly measure the damage gambling causes to people and their families. Instead of vague

labels, these instruments capture real consequences: financial stress, relationship breakdowns,

mental health impacts. The next evolution ties these harms to public health metrics,

the same frameworks used for diseases and injuries. This approach reveals exactly who carries

the burden in our communities and integrates gambling research into mainstream public health.