The United States uses about 9 billion chickens and 150 million pigs, cattle and sheep each year as food, and yet many complain about the high numbers of animals used in research labs. Only about 26 million research animals are actually used, and most of those animals are rodents, birds and reptiles. The earliest use of animal testing has been recorded all the way back to at least 500 B.C. Aristotle, Erasistratus and Herophilus are early physician-scientists who helped to discover the functions of living organisms and set up the framework for animal testing that is now in place today. This strong foundation that has been previously established by Erasistratus and Herophilus has resulted in many advances in science and consumer safety. Animal …show more content…
There seems to be an unspoken responsibility between humans that it is understood not to put other humans in danger, therefore, research using humans as test subjects is very uncommon. The National Institute of Health has created a law regarding the use of human test subjects, saying “The world Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki states that human trials should be preceded by tests on animals.”(2) Another important standard when considering safety is the reason for the products needing to be tested. By using animal testing, scientists are able to ensure the safety of products and ingredients. Limiting the use of animal testing may also cause trade between countries to go down. For example, an article on bloomberg.com states, “China requires that all cosmetics be tested on animals before they go on sale, so cosmetic companies must have their products tested on animals if they want distribution in China.” In order to get the best results for these safety tests, proper treatment of the animals must be maintained. Studies have shown that crowded or stressed animals are more likely to produce unreliable testing results. Consequently, most animal research labs have professionals such as veterinarians, husbandry specialists, and animal health technicians to take care of research animals. Overall, animal testing is beneficial because it sets a certain safety standard on both products and the treatment of living