Some people argue that all experimentation on animals is bad and should be outlawed.
However, others believe that important scientific discoveries can be made from animal experiments.
Can experimentation on animals be justified?
Are there any alternatives?
Experiments involving animals are very common these days. They are sometimes crucial in our fight against a range of health conditions and are thus justifiable given the absence of any viable alternatives. Nevertheless, their use in other fields should be banned.
On the one hand, the modern healthcare system benefits tremendously from animal experiments. Indeed, their importance in the development of new medicines and vaccines is hard to overstate. If it were not for such tests, it would be difficult to guarantee the efficacy and safety of these intervention and prevention measures. Hence, millions of people who have used effective treatment to recover from diseases or even to sidestep them thanks to vaccination owe their lives and health to such tests. Similarly, tests on animals have helped us to gain insights into the working of the human brain. This has allowed us to understand the causes of various mental health issues, such as cognitive decline, memory loss and Alzheimer’s. Undoubtedly, this has helped us to find measures to avoid them or at least, delay their onset.
When we consider that no reasonable method can replace current practices, it is fair to say that the involvement of animals in tests is justified to achieve such improvements in healthcare. Yes, it is technically possible to put an end to these tests on the basis of arguments revolving around morality and animal suffering, but that would endanger human lives and halt our progress in medicine. Tests of new drugs and vaccines would essentially have to be conducted on humans and our advances in neuroscience would come to rely only on human subjects.
However, the same argument does not hold in the case of the cosmetics industry. Cosmetics companies use animals as test subjects to avoid unintended consequences of their products such as allergic reactions. Although this might also seem like a noble cause, unlike healthcare, such products are not a necessity and do not significantly improve our lives. Some pleasure people might take from resulting positive changes in their appearances is not nearly enough to impose significant suffering on animals.
In conclusion, today it is difficult to forego animal testing altogether on practical grounds. However, they should not be a part of the cosmetics industry to develop various products.
376 words
~50 minutes
#task2
However, others believe that important scientific discoveries can be made from animal experiments.
Can experimentation on animals be justified?
Are there any alternatives?
Experiments involving animals are very common these days. They are sometimes crucial in our fight against a range of health conditions and are thus justifiable given the absence of any viable alternatives. Nevertheless, their use in other fields should be banned.
On the one hand, the modern healthcare system benefits tremendously from animal experiments. Indeed, their importance in the development of new medicines and vaccines is hard to overstate. If it were not for such tests, it would be difficult to guarantee the efficacy and safety of these intervention and prevention measures. Hence, millions of people who have used effective treatment to recover from diseases or even to sidestep them thanks to vaccination owe their lives and health to such tests. Similarly, tests on animals have helped us to gain insights into the working of the human brain. This has allowed us to understand the causes of various mental health issues, such as cognitive decline, memory loss and Alzheimer’s. Undoubtedly, this has helped us to find measures to avoid them or at least, delay their onset.
When we consider that no reasonable method can replace current practices, it is fair to say that the involvement of animals in tests is justified to achieve such improvements in healthcare. Yes, it is technically possible to put an end to these tests on the basis of arguments revolving around morality and animal suffering, but that would endanger human lives and halt our progress in medicine. Tests of new drugs and vaccines would essentially have to be conducted on humans and our advances in neuroscience would come to rely only on human subjects.
However, the same argument does not hold in the case of the cosmetics industry. Cosmetics companies use animals as test subjects to avoid unintended consequences of their products such as allergic reactions. Although this might also seem like a noble cause, unlike healthcare, such products are not a necessity and do not significantly improve our lives. Some pleasure people might take from resulting positive changes in their appearances is not nearly enough to impose significant suffering on animals.
In conclusion, today it is difficult to forego animal testing altogether on practical grounds. However, they should not be a part of the cosmetics industry to develop various products.
376 words
~50 minutes
#task2