Testing and experiments on animals in the medical in the cosmetic field is a heavily debated topic in today’s society. Scientific testing on animals has both a negative and positive side to it. With scientific testing, there have been advances in the medical field thanks to the experiments, but that also means researchers are inflicting eminence amount of pain on their test subjects. With commercial testing it is just to see if they will have a response to a cosmetic, skin care product, or fragrance and that is deemed okay for a human to use. Testing and experimenting on animals should not be allowed in either of the scientific or commercial testing areas.
One of the main reasons testing on animals common is that a few, chimpanzees and mice, share up to 99 percent of their DNA with us (ProCon). But many other animals, such as fish, hamsters, etc., are tested on, but they are not as close to our human DNA as chimpanzees and mice, but they are still used for testing. Even with being so close in DNA with humans, chimpanzees and mice are still animals and their reactions to a drug or cosmetic item can differ from humans. The test animal’s response in an experiment has the potential to be either a good or bad thing.
In a drug experiment, the animal being tested on could have a negative response to it and, as a result, that drug is considered unfit. There is always the possibility that even though an animal had a negative response to a drug, a human will not. A drug that has been deemed unfit for public consumption because of the animal’s negative response has the possibility of saving hundreds and maybe thousands of lives. There is always the uncertainty of an animal’s to reaction to a drug, but to humans, it might be a lifesaving drug or harm humans. Even if there are laws in place, a person or organization will go around them and treat the animals in cruel and inhumane ways.
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With commercial testing, animals are subjected to horrible treatment and most of the time it’s for a simple cosmetic item. There is also the argument that animals do not have rights, that they are not fully aware of what is happening to them and do not feel pain as humans feel pain. With that thought, researchers are inflicted pain on the test animals and sometimes the experiment is just to see if an eyeliner or mascara with cause a negative response. Animals do not have the ability to voice their opinions and are experiment on without a choice. There is an augment about the consumption of animals, if they are living beings them why are humans eating them. Eating meat is a part of nature and every carnivore eats an animal that is lower on the food chain. But when killing an animal to eat it should be done in the most humane way possible.
If there are alternative methods for the experiments that are not on living beings, then those methods should be used instead of animals. Researchers should develop those methods needed to stop, if there are not ones already, them from using animals in their experiments and harming them. There is not a hundred percent certainty that a test performed an animal will always be successful. In an experiment, researchers could deem a drug unfit, but it could be a lifesaving drug or deem a drug fit that it could kill many people. Even with the advances in the medical field thanks to the experiments and testing on animals, there is always a possibility that it could go wrong. In this century we are making advance in many areas and should develop methods that do not harm another living being.
References
- NCBI – Ethical considerations in animal testing in research and education
- NCBI – Animal Models for Human Diseases
- DoSomething.org – 11 Facts About Animal Testing
- Humane Society International – Hundreds of Companies Banning Animal Tests
- BMC Medical Ethics – Ethical and scientific pitfalls concerning laboratory research with non-human primates
