its sad that prescription med companies have to advertise....which drives up the cost of meds....doctors should be doing their jobs and educating patients, but most docs are stupid ......i would have died in a nursing home long ago if I depended on docs rather than getting medical info elsewhere.

Gambling has been an ongoing epidemic since forever.

There has been an upsurge in ads for gambling apps, which might make it easier to get people hooked who may have otherwise not wanted to get involved with bookies, etc. - but for the most part, if people are going to gamble, they are going to gamble.

The problem is that the promise of 'free cash' is a powerful lure - which is why scratch-offs and lotteries bring in so much money, casinos rake it in, and illegal gambling activity thrives.

Gamblers will go to ridiculous lengths, take absurd risks, and in many cases - end up destroying their families, screwing over their friends, and ending up in prison (or worse) all chasing the dream that they'll finally 'hit it big'.

They'll throw good money after bad, convince themselves 'I'll get out after this next one', mortgage their homes, take out loans, lie, cheat, and steal - all to feed their habit - no different than a drug addict.

None of the above are allowed to advertise in the UK.

They have limited first Amendment rights, they had to fight to get those rights. 

It was considered unethical because that sort of thing is supposed to be professional and not profit making*.  Many really ethical doctors and dentists, etc, still don't advertise.

(*Clearly, they do make a profit, but some also donate their services to help those in need.)