They will do anything to achieve their goals just like a drug addict would.I think that some years in jail would be the right punishment for such persons and also there to be treated for their illness.
Drug addict doesn't have a goal. They just want to destroy their lives because they want to. That's their own will and once they started, they don't know how to stop. It's the same in gambling, once you started to lose a lot of money, the determined you want to recover it all. That's when greed will allow you to waste all your money in betting.
To avoid those addictions, at first you should know the possibilities of betting before doing it. Do some research about the advantages and disadvantages of gambling. Also learn how to control emotions in urge of winning more money or recovering all your losses. Learn how to save yourself from greed. If you learned all of that before betting, now you'll prevent loss and addictions