Ask FDA to Sanction Non-Animal Testing
Did you know that because human animals and nonhuman animals do not react the same way to
chemicals, 90+ percent of drugs that test as safe in nonhuman animals
later fail in trials with humans?
Recently the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which requires animal testing for drugs, met with Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) to learn about more effective alternatives that make testing with animals unnecessary. (Including computer models, in vitro research, and good ol’ fashioned epidemiologic studies. Read all about them.)
For those of you who have parents or other people in your life who think animal experimentation is necessary and has saved us from gruesome diseases and death, check out some of the gruesome diseases and death that are a direct result of the release chemicals into our daily lives that were tested as safe through animal tests. And if there’s anyone who is up against dissection in the classroom, check out the many alternatives. You might be surprised to learn that real animal dissection is ultimately much more expensive than the alternatives, which makes you wonder why our underfunded schools haven’t caught on yet. (Here’s a hint: it rhymes with "big business." 6 million animals are dissected in US schools each year, and our largest biological supply company–one company–grosses $25-$30 million annually in the sale of animals for dissection.)
You also might be surprised to learn that 85% of all US medical schools, including Harvard, Stanford, Yale, and Columbia Universities, have eliminated animal laboratories once used for teaching and now use modern, cost-effective, and humane alternatives. If you’re in college and you have an objection to dissection, do something about it.
Please show your support of alternatives to animal testing by signing this petition written by PCRM, and then forwarding it to your friends and family. I know that there are a lot of petitions floating around in cyberspace, but I know the dedicated professionals at PCRM, and I can attest to the validity of the life of this particular petition. It will get where it needs to go, and your signature will help bring effective and efficient models of testing to the FDA.
