Hamilton, NJ -- (SBWIRE) -- 12/14/2018 -- With the holidays approaching, the New Jersey Lottery (NJL) and the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey (CCGNJ) have teamed up to warn parents of the potential dangers of gifting lottery tickets and scratch-offs to children. With the slogan, "'Tis the Season to Gift Responsibly. Lottery Is Not Child's Play," the NJL and the CCGNJ hope to spread awareness of this campaign and enlighten the public on the negative effects these gifts can have on children.

In a press conference held on November 29, 2018, James A. Carey, Acting Executive Director of the NJL, and Neva Pryor, Executive Director of CCGNJ, held a joint event to launch the "2018 Holiday Gifting Awareness Campaign."

As Carey explained in his opening remarks, "Research on youth gambling shows that the earlier a child begins gambling, the more likely they are to develop a gambling problem as an adult." Although many parents and family members seem to think gifting lottery tickets to children is harmless fun, this has shown to have a damaging long-term effect as these children grow up.

This holiday season, the NJL and CCGNJ encourage all adults to gift responsibly. "Parents and other adults should refrain from giving lottery tickets to minors," explained Pryor. "If you choose to give a lottery ticket as a present this holiday season, make sure you consider the age of the recipient and don't give a lottery ticket to a child."

CCGNJ offers compulsive gambling help in the form of educational resources, help meetings, and other gambling treatment options in NJ. Contact their free, confidential helpline, 800-GAMBLER or visit https://800gambler.org/ to learn more.

About the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey
The Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey is a non-profit, private organization dedicated to helping individuals seek help for their disordered gambling problem, and for concerned friends and loved ones to confidentially express their concerns about someone close to them. Their 24/7 hotline is 800-GAMBLER. The Council also works to train professionals in the fields of gambling addiction and recovery.