Gambling harm and suicide – a small case study

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Type

Research

Published

01 July 2026

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• Population health

Description

Public Health Scotland (PHS) has developed this gambling harm and suicide case study using a small sample of anonymised data from a local NHS board over a 9 year period. This paper is intended for professionals working on suicide, mental health and gambling harm. It has provided a unique opportunity to analyse a local data set and adds to the limited evidence base around gambling harm and suicide in Scotland. More research is needed to better understand the link between gambling harm and suicide, and to raise awareness of this important public health issue. However, from a precautionary principle of reducing harm, this knowledge of an association of gambling with suicide deaths should be used to influence policy and supports calls for stronger gambling regulation, to prevent further harm and deaths.