The Myth of Animal Testing
Animal testing has been practiced by humans for centuries and has been found in Greek writing that dates back to 300 BC. Although, in more recent times, specifically the beginning of the 19th century, animal testing has become more prevalent. However, along with this rapid growth of animal testing also came agencies that aimed to put it to a stop. One of the major issues that people had with animal testing was the cruel and inhumane treatment on the animals. In 1866, the first animal Humane Society was created but it wasn't until the 19th century that regulations were set in place to limit and reduce the cruelty brought upon these animals. However, testing and studying on animals has helped the development for several life saving cures and treatments for both animals and humans. Therefore, scientific and commercial testing on animals within a government regulated and inspected facility provides humane testing for biological advancements.
One of the biggest arguments against animal testing is that it is cruel and inhumane. Many of the tests and experiments conducted on animals cause them harm and discomfort. The Draize Test is a great example of the inhumane testing that animals can be subject to. In short, the test was a study conducted on animals that tested the irritation to eyes caused by shampoo. The shampoo was directly placed in the eyes of animals which caused irritation and discomfort. It was conducted so that “[the study could show] the distribution of the studied shampoos, as well as their potential for eye irritation in the Draize test”(Costa 2016). However, these tests had to be done in order to understand the effects of shampoo on the eye. If these tests were not conducted on animals, then the shampoo could have seriously harmed the eyes of a human. Therefore, it is necessary to test certain products on animals prior to human use. There are several concerns about animal cruelty, however, animal research is highly regulated by the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA). It has been regulated since 1966 with laws in place to protect animals from abuse and mistreatment. “The Congress further finds that it is essential to regulate, as provided in this chapter, the transportation, purchase, sale, housing, care, handling, and treatment of animals by carriers or by persons or organizations engaged in using them for research or experimental purposes or for exhibition purposes or holding them for sale as pets or for any such purpose or use.” (U.S. Government Printing Office 2012). The AWA requires regular inspections along with a minimum of housing standards. Also, all proposals to use animals for research must be approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. Moreover, the majority of research institutions are reviewed for humane practices by the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International. Laboratories that receive funding from the US Public Health Service must completely agree with their policy on humane care on animals or the company will be terminated. Another argument against animal testing is that animals are different from humans which make them poor test subjects. They’re metabolic, anatomic, and cellular makeup is quite different from humans(Gawrylewski 2007). Therefore, certain products tested on animals sometimes don’t accurately represent how they would react on humans. However, animals and humans are very similar, especially from a biological standpoint. “In fact, chimpanzees share more that 99% of DNA with humans and mice …show more content…
“Currently, nine out of ten experimental drugs fail in clinical studies because we cannot accurately predict how they will behave in people based on laboratory and animal studies”(FDA 2006). ➡ Even though the results may be misleading in specific animal tests, there isn’t much of a better alternative. Tests on certain humans may prove successful, however, those same tests may not prove successful in other humans. For instance, a medicine that helps one person may cause an allergic reaction in someone else. “Consider that of all the drugs which pass Phase 1 clinical trials in humans, 86% will fail in later stage human trials”(Lovell-Badge 2017). There is no guarantee that specific tests will prove useful for humans, therefore they must be tested on animals prior to human
Animal testing has been practiced by humans for centuries and has been found in Greek writing that dates back to 300 BC. Although, in more recent times, specifically the beginning of the 19th century, animal testing has become more prevalent. However, along with this rapid growth of animal testing also came agencies that aimed to put it to a stop. One of the major issues that people had with animal testing was the cruel and inhumane treatment on the animals. In 1866, the first animal Humane Society was created but it wasn't until the 19th century that regulations were set in place to limit and reduce the cruelty brought upon these animals. However, testing and studying on animals has helped the development for several life saving cures and treatments for both animals and humans. Therefore, scientific and commercial testing on animals within a government regulated and inspected facility provides humane testing for biological advancements.
One of the biggest arguments against animal testing is that it is cruel and inhumane. Many of the tests and experiments conducted on animals cause them harm and discomfort. The Draize Test is a great example of the inhumane testing that animals can be subject to. In short, the test was a study conducted on animals that tested the irritation to eyes caused by shampoo. The shampoo was directly placed in the eyes of animals which caused irritation and discomfort. It was conducted so that “[the study could show] the distribution of the studied shampoos, as well as their potential for eye irritation in the Draize test”(Costa 2016). However, these tests had to be done in order to understand the effects of shampoo on the eye. If these tests were not conducted on animals, then the shampoo could have seriously harmed the eyes of a human. Therefore, it is necessary to test certain products on animals prior to human use. There are several concerns about animal cruelty, however, animal research is highly regulated by the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA). It has been regulated since 1966 with laws in place to protect animals from abuse and mistreatment. “The Congress further finds that it is essential to regulate, as provided in this chapter, the transportation, purchase, sale, housing, care, handling, and treatment of animals by carriers or by persons or organizations engaged in using them for research or experimental purposes or for exhibition purposes or holding them for sale as pets or for any such purpose or use.” (U.S. Government Printing Office 2012). The AWA requires regular inspections along with a minimum of housing standards. Also, all proposals to use animals for research must be approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. Moreover, the majority of research institutions are reviewed for humane practices by the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International. Laboratories that receive funding from the US Public Health Service must completely agree with their policy on humane care on animals or the company will be terminated. Another argument against animal testing is that animals are different from humans which make them poor test subjects. They’re metabolic, anatomic, and cellular makeup is quite different from humans(Gawrylewski 2007). Therefore, certain products tested on animals sometimes don’t accurately represent how they would react on humans. However, animals and humans are very similar, especially from a biological standpoint. “In fact, chimpanzees share more that 99% of DNA with humans and mice …show more content…
“Currently, nine out of ten experimental drugs fail in clinical studies because we cannot accurately predict how they will behave in people based on laboratory and animal studies”(FDA 2006). ➡ Even though the results may be misleading in specific animal tests, there isn’t much of a better alternative. Tests on certain humans may prove successful, however, those same tests may not prove successful in other humans. For instance, a medicine that helps one person may cause an allergic reaction in someone else. “Consider that of all the drugs which pass Phase 1 clinical trials in humans, 86% will fail in later stage human trials”(Lovell-Badge 2017). There is no guarantee that specific tests will prove useful for humans, therefore they must be tested on animals prior to human