The number of adolescents treated for gambling addiction spiked last year as they spent more time at home due to the coronavirus pandemic, data showed.

Rep. Kim Do-eup of the ruling People Power Party released the statistics from the state-run Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service that showed 7,063 adolescents received treatment for gambling addiction between 2017 and 2021.

The number steadily increased from 837 in 2017 to 1,032 in 2018, 1,328 in 2019 and 1,597 in 2020. It surged in 2021 to 2,269, up 42 percent on-year. 

However, the number of adolescents seeking counseling for gambling problems decreased over the past two years. (Yonhap)