National Context
The issue of medical testing on animals impacts the United States because it is something that happens all across the country, but the people are oblivious to this happening. The U.S. has a federal agency called the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) which oversees the process of the evaluation of drugs, vaccines, food additives, household products, workplace chemicals, cosmetics, water and air pollutants and other substances. One of the first stages to be approved by the FDA is to pass testing on animals.
Some ways that people are fighting against animal testing is by making products that are not tested on animals. One well known store that doesn’t test their products on animals is Lush. Lush is a company/store that is known for their bath soaps, makeup, perfumes, and all type of bath products. Lush states that, “Fighting animal testing should be more than a slogan; it needs to be a genuine practice. Unfortunately, it’s become commonplace in the North American cosmetics industry to test products and their ingredients on animals in labs. Laboratory testing is done to substances that make up these cosmetic products, to see whether they are likely to harm people, or damage the environment when they are disposed of.” Lush is a store that prides itself on producing free of animal-cruelty products for the costumers.
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The issue is similar in a global scale and national scale. The process used by the FDA in the United States is similar to the one used in other countries. “You may wonder why two different animal species are used for testing at this stage. The reason is that no animal is exactly like a person in every way. A drug may not be toxic to rats but may be toxic to guinea pigs, and, by using two different species, the chances are greater that the toxicity of a drug will be discovered before it is ever given to a person. This stage of safety testing usually takes about 4 years. Drug companies test for mutagenicity (ability to cause genetic changes) and carcinogenicity (ability to cause cancer). The drugs are also tested to confirm that they do not cause infertility (inability to have children) or birth defects. This stage of safety testing takes many years, because it may take a long period of time for animals to develop cancer or infertility as a result of a toxic drugs.” Overall, almost all countries test on animals first in order to see the negative side effects of the product, and therefore will get an idea of how the product might affect humans.
- "Laws and Regulations | Animal Use in Research." Laws and Regulations | Animal Use in Research. Web. 15 May 2015.
- "Still Fighting Against Animal Testing." Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics. Web. 15 May 2015.
- "Still Fighting Against Animal Testing." Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics. Web. 15 May 2015.