Hamilton, NJ -- (SBWire) -- 03/30/2018 --The Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey (CCGNJ), a nonprofit organization that provides treatment and support for disordered sports betting in New Jersey and other types of gambling, recognizes that technology continues to change the ways people gamble. One innovation comes in the form of loot boxes and other similar prize systems in video games. These monetization practices often incorporate random chance, opening up the possibility for disordered gambling in players that engage with them.

When a gamer receives a rare or valuable item, skin, or weapon from a loot box, they receive a rush of dopamine, a brain chemical that produces sensations of pleasure or happiness. Abuse of this response can cause individuals to become desensitized to the dopamine their body produces. As a result, they pursue more and more stimulation -- in this case, they buy more and more loot boxes -- eventually developing a gambling disorder.

Young brains prove vulnerable to these psychological tactics. In the United States, over 750,000 people between the ages of 14 and 21 may have a gambling addiction. Although some countries regulate these monetization practices under gambling law, America still does not consider loot boxes or microtransactions to be gambling.

"Education and awareness about disordered gambling become especially important when we consider the nation's youth," said Neva Pryor, Executive Director of the CCGNJ. "Growing minds are particularly susceptible to monetization systems like loot boxes. If we teach them about the risks, we can protect them from the dangers of disordered gambling."

To learn more about the CCGNJ and the resources they provide to support recovery from disordered gambling, visit their website, https://800gambler.org/. For immediate assistance with hard-to-control sports gambling in East Rutherford, NJ or any other form of gambling in the state, call their free, confidential hotline, 1-800-GAMBLER.

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.