Animal testing
Abstract:
Animal testing also known as animal experimentation has become a controversial issue for a long time.Testing on animals has enormously increased with the advancement of research and development in medical field. Animals are used as experimental models to test the products, medicines and chemicals before they are released in to the market.However,testing on animals is a cruel act and should not be encouraged to carry experiments on animals for human benefits.As we know, nothing interesting is ever completely one sided, same goes with animal testing. A brief account of what type of animals are tested and how it should be minimized is discussed in the paper with examples.
Introduction:
Animal testing is widely done for research purposes to understand how a product behaves on human body. It is usually conducted in universities, research laboratories, pharmaceutical companies and some facilities designed for experimenting. Animal testing has been going on for a significant time frame, since ages. The myth that experimenting on animals is one of the ways to obtain the accurate results of the products that humans use is the primary root cause for animal testing.Animals are used for research purposes as a tool to understand effects of medical experiments. Moreover, experiments are done on animals like cats, mice, dogs, rabbits and monkeys to obtain different products like vaccines, antibiotics, and cosmetics, which are used in medical treatments,
As of 2015, 200 to 225 million animals are said to used in laboratory research for the biomedical industry annually worldwide. Typically defended by arguments of reliability and human health benefits, recently the question of ethics and values placed on animal testing have caused it to become a relevant and pressing topic that has been more widely discussed and debated. First off, the laboratory conditions that are instigated upon millions of animal models for the sake of medical research has been said to be unethical and cruel. Additionally, it has been debated that the results of animal experimentation are unreliable across a wide range of areas. Lastly, animal testing not only leads away from the direction of resources from more effective testing methods but also prolongs the duration of time humans may need to wait for an effective cure. Therefore, the potential benefits of animal experimentation are greatly outweighed by the risks and collective harm of humans and animals which is why resources should be directed towards more human-based testing procedures.
The use of animals in scientific research has hugely increased in the last few years. A research conducted by Dr. Hadwen Trust suggests that approximately 115 millions animals are used in scientific experimentation every year (qtd in “Fact and figures”). Animal testing, also known as animal vivisection, is a process before human clinical trials, where animals are used in experiments to determine toxicity, dosing and efficacy of drugs (Biology dictionary). Although some scientists argue that animal testing is necessary to ensure safety, animal testing is unreliable, dangerous and unnecessary.
Many people often oversee the effects of animal testing. This has been going on for decades and many are unaware of the results and the damages animal testing can cause. Animals undergo a lot of stress and pain when they are put through experimentations. Many have debated that it is unethical to test on animals while others say it helps to protect the safety of humans. In my opinion, animal testing is cruel and should be made illegal. Their lives are just as important as human lives and should not be treated as experimental animals. The system of an animal differs from the human system, therefore even if a tested product did not harm the animal, it may or may not be harmful to humans. Hence, our body system reactions differ from the bodies of an animal. It has been scientifically proven that 90% of the animals being tested in labs results in death while only a handful of animal experiments are successful. There are multiple alternative methods rather than forcefully harming innocent animals. I will explore how animal testing can affect the health of the animals and if there is possibly a better alternative rather than testing on animals.
Animal testing has been one of the issues that people are fighting overtime because of its moral. Even though some results of tests are successful on people, many people are still fighting for the animal’s rights. They believe that animals should have their own rights to live a free life where they belong, just like their species. In scientists point of view, animals have been one of the main subjects to test on, but a lot of them are currently looking forward to use and develop alternatives for the cruel act of animal testing.
From when you are a baby to when you are an adult animal testing is used in your everyday products. From the Pampers you put on as a baby and the Johnson and Johnson you are washed with. To when you are older the Febreeze, Sunsilk, and Gillette you use.( Companies That do Test on Animals) Animal testing surrounds you in every act of life. “The guess is around 100 million animals are used worldwide in animal testing.” (Animal Rights) Animal testing is rooted from natural curiosity. How the insides of a living organism operate and look is an interesting idea. Because of the fact that dissection of humans was illegal by the Roman Church, animals were the second best option for knowledge of living organisms. (Animal Testing) The debate
Animal testing has contributed to many life-saving cures and treatments for humans. In the last century, nearly all the medical breakthroughs, for finding cures and treatment for diseases, were directly from animal testing. Animal testing first began in 129 A D with a Greek doctor named Galen. Galen’s main focus for conducting animal testing was to advance the understanding of anatomy, physiology, pathology, and pharmacology. Scientists have been doing animal testing for various reasons, from finding cures to diseases to testing makeup to see if the makeup is safe for human use. Animal testing has been good for humans, but not much for the animals being tested on. While many people do not agree with animal testing because of the high risks
Animal testing is a substantial controversy across the nation. According to Rush, Catherine M. et al. “Animal Models to Investigate the Pathogenesis of Rheumatic Heart Disease.” Frontiers in Pediatrics 2 (2014): 116. PMC. Web. 27 Oct. 2016., animal testing has been around for quite some time. Her article states that “Animals have been used repeatedly throughout the history of biomedical research. Early Greek physician-scientists, such as Aristotle, (384 – 322 BC) and Erasistratus, (304 – 258 BC), performed experiments on living animals. Likewise, Galen (129 – 199 / 217 AD), a Greek physician who practiced in Rome and was a giant in the history of medicine, conducted animal experiments to advance the understanding of anatomy, physiology, pathology, and pharmacology. Ibn Zuhr (Avenzoar), an Arab physician in twelfth century Moorish Spain, introduced animal testing as an experimental method for testing surgical procedures before applying them to human patients.”
It is estimated that each year over 100 million animals in the United States are used for animal testing (ProCon.org, 2017). This is unlikely an underestimate as it is impossible to receive a correct count worldwide. Thousands of animals are to be euthanized from the complications they endure from testing. Animals are used to test scientific developments and commercial products. New medical and non-medical experiments are tested on animals to verify the harmfulness of new medications or the safety of a product that will be used on humans. Although the importance of animal testing brings more medical advancement over the years using fewer humans in experiments, it is still an expensive way of researching inaccurate results and at the same time, it is a practice of animal cruelty.
In history, animal experimentation has played a significant important role in leading to new discoveries and human benefit. However, what many people tend to forget are the numbers of animal subjects that have suffered serious harm during the process of experimentation. Each day across America innocent animals are used as test subjects for products that have little to no relevance importance. Animal testing has had many negative issues arise in society in a negative way. Debating over the animal rights movement has raised many questions and concerns for years. There is an ongoing controversy regarding if companies should stop testing their products on animals. Although animal research has been the cause of many medical breakthroughs, is it morally and ethically right to put animals in these kinds of situations? This is one of the underlying questions that must be solved before it is too late. When considering how truly reliable the results of animal test are, and the expense of testing will help bring new light to the problem. By simply passing a policy will not only address this issue, will help better products and medicine in the future.
Animal testing has become a controversial issue among many people in the world today. Some of these people involved in this controversial debate believe that animal testing is unethical and should be replaced by other methods. The other group of people in this debate believe that animal testing is necessary in order to research new products that cannot be tested on humans. Traditional animal testing forces animals to undergo numerous experiments for different forms of research. Medical, cosmetic, and many other types of research experiments use animals to provide the results on how the new product may affect humans. There are many people that support the use of alternative methods to animal research and then
With every new emerging disease and make up trend, hundreds and thousands of drugs are tested and evaluated before they are sold and used to ensure their safety in humans. Animal testing, also referred to as animal experimentation and animal research involves experimentation on animals such as mice, rats, rabbits, guinea pigs and hamsters in labs to investigate the safety and efficiency of a variety of products ranging from medication to cosmetics and even understanding the physiology of the human body. However, with masses of animals killed each year for this purpose; this essay will aim to evaluate the necessity of animal testing as well the opposition to why animal testing should not be a part of our human nature.
“Over 100 million animals are burned, crippled, poisoned, and abused in US labs every year” (11 Facts). Animal testing is a very flawed creation in today’s world. This innovation has caused much harm to many animals while also hurting the opinions of animal activists around the world. Animal testing is also known as the use of animals in experiments and development projects usually to determine toxicity, dosing and efficacy of test drugs before proceeding to human clinical trials (Biology Online). The use of animal testing has been around for throughout all of history, it also carries its disadvantages as they diminish the lives of many animals along with their unspoken opinion while also having some advantages, and lastly this notion is very expensive (Scutti).
Animal testing is an ongoing problem throughout the world. Animal Testing is when scientists or researchers study how animals react to a certain chemical, drug, treatment, or cosmetic. Many types of people who conduct experiments that involve animals. The most common people who test on animals are scientists, researchers, experimenters, chemists, and students. They often test on animals because they have human like traits. Animal testers use animals to test their products so humans aren’t affected
Animal testing is a process of using animals in conducting scientific experiments (Christopher 14). The practice is also widely referred to as animal research or animal experimentation. In efforts to understand how the human body reacts and behaves in different conditions, animals are used as an experimental substitute in finding or establishing relevant solutions related to items or substances that humans use on a day to day basis such as cosmetics, household merchandise, food preservatives, industrial chemicals, supplements, and medication (Hackman 92). The tests that involve animals largely take place in medical schools, establishments of military defense, Universities, laboratories and in biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. Most
Animal testing is the use of non-human animals in research, and development projects, for purposes of determining the safety of substances such as food or drugs. Animal testing is also used in various amounts of research such as agricultural, medical, and bio-medical. One may assume that the animals are dealt with care and are given the necessary needs to survive through an experiment. However, all experiments have the potential to cause physical and psychological distress to the animal. This includes: dogs, cats, rabbits, pigs, sheep, monkeys, etc. Although a variety of animals are used 90% are rats, mice and birds. No matter what type of animal they are most are killed at the end of an experiment or some may be re-used in other experiments. Therefore over 115 million animals are burned; crippled, poisoned, abused, and killed in laboratory experiments around the world. Those who agree show their support, while other show their resistant to understanding animal testing.