Animal Testing

Product Testing: Toxic and Tragic

This information was kindly provided by the Humane Society International

Millions of animals are used in cruel tests each year to assess the "safety" of cosmetics and household products. Many of these tests are of limited value but continue to be used despite their shortcomings and the existence of alternatives.

The most commonly used tests are the Lethal Dose 50 (LD50) and Draize Eye and Skin tests. The LD50 tests are designed to test what amounts of a substance will kill 50% of the animals tested while the Draize tests are designed to assess an animal's reaction to a substance being placed either in the eye or on the shaved, bare skin.

Consumers have the choice of buying products that have been produced using "cruelty free" practices.

DRAIZE EYE AND SKIN TESTS
In the Draize eye test a substance is dropped into the eyes of a group of albino rabbits. The animals are often immobilised in stocks from which only their heads protrude. They usually receive no anaesthesia during the tests.

After placing the substance in the rabbits' eyes, technicians record the damage to the eye tissue at specific intervals over an average period of 72 hours, with tests sometimes lasting 7-18 days. Reactions to the substances include swollen eyelids, inflamed irises, ulceration, bleeding, massive deterioration, and blindness.

During the tests, the rabbits' eyelids are held open with clips. Animals maybreak their necks or otherwise be injured as they struggle to escape. Technicians performing eye irritancy tests do not attempt to treat the rabbits or seek antidotes to the test substance, so the test cannot help lead to treatments for potential human injuries. In the Draize skin test, the substance is applied to the shaved skin of the animal and the reaction noted. Reactions can included sever irritation and burning.

ACUTE TOXICITY TESTS
Acute toxicity tests, commonly called lethal dose or poisoning tests, determine the amount of a substance that will kill a percentage, even up to 100%, of a group of test animals. In these tests, a substance is forced by tube into the animals' stomachs or through holes cut into their throats. It may be injected under the skin, into a vein, or into the lining of the abdomen; mixed into feed; inhaled through a gas mask; or applied into the eyes, rectum, or vagina.

Experimenters observe the animals' reactions, which can include convulsions, laboured breathing, diarrhoea, constipation, emaciation, skin eruptions, abnormal posture, and bleeding from the eyes, nose, or mouth. Many of the animals die, not from poisoning, but from burst of ruptured intestines caused by the force-feeding process.

The widely used Lethal Dose 50 (LD/50) test was developed in 1927. The LD/50 testing period continues until at least 50 percent of the animal dies, usually in two to four weeks.

ALTERNATIVES TO ANIMAL TESTS
Non-animal test methods have proved to be more reliable and less expensive than animal tests. Alternatives include the use of cell cultures; tissue cultures; corneas from eye banks; and sophisticated computer and mathematical models. Companies also have the option of formulating products using the many ingredients or combinations of ingredients already determined to be safe for human use.

LETHAL BUT LEGAL
While the extent of cosmetic testing in Australia is unknown, many companies market and manufacture products created to a recipe that has been tested overseas. Testing methods are determined by the cosmetics and household product manufacturers, and the test data are used largely to defend the companies against possible consumer lawsuits.

COMPASSION IN ACTION
A growing number of socially responsible manufacturers have recognised the cruelty of animal testing. By buying only "cruelty free" products and by voicing their complaints to companies that still use animal tests, consumers play a vital role in eliminating cruel test methods.