Animal Testing Should Be Banned - 1985 Words

Animals have been used to advance medical science for thousands of years, dating back to the time of ancient Greece, where scientists such as Aristotle and Erasistratus used animals for experimentation, and Galen who is considered to be one of the most important physicians of the ancient Roman empire conducted experiments using animals that advanced the understanding of anatomy, physiology, pathology, and pharmacology (Animal Testing and Medicine 1). An Arab physician by the name of Ibn Zuhr also introduced the idea of animals being used to test experimental surgical procedures before applying them to human patients. Poisoning and severe side effects has resulted from drugs being released to the public without testing, this caused a law to†¦show more content†¦Animals are essential for biomedical research because they are biologically similar to humans, this allows scientists to see how proposed treatments affect the body. Also, some diseases can only be studied in living or ganisms, and the use of humans is unethical and illegal. Biomedical research using animal experimentation has helped to increase the safety of the public against many diseases. In recent history, scientists have been capable of creating treatments against diseases such as polio, smallpox, whooping cough, and measles which affect or have affected a large part of the human population. Scientists also used what they learn through past research to create treatments for diseases that have become epidemics recently, such as Ebola which recently spread across most of Africa. Without the research animals used from animals, epidemics could have been even more devastating on the human population. Animals are used in biomedical research because their basic cell processes are the same as humans. Mice share about ninety eight percent of DNA with a human, which makes them susceptible to the same types of diseases humans are. In addition â€Å" Many basic cell processes are the same in all animal s, and the bodies of animals are like humans in the way that they perform many vital functions such as breathing, digestion, movement, sight, hearing, and reproduction† (Why Animals are Used 1). Because of these similarities, scientists are able to develop and