Is the Use of Animals in Research Ethical Essay

Is the Use of Animals in Research Ethical - Essay Example These arguments are true in some cases. However, it is almost impossible to stop using such animals because their use is of great importance for the survival of man and animals as well. This paper analyses the ethics of using animals during research, the anticipated audience being animal health experts. Animals are often used as substitutes for human volunteers and are important specimens through whom scientists can monitor reaction to various stimuli and other significant variables in complex organs and tissues. They are therefore important for the development of medicine or testing medicine before use in the large human and animal population. If this is not done, a large population of human beings and animals would have died from diseases or affected by certain drugs that were not tested before being released and this would have been more unethical. Basing on this evidence and facts, I hold to the position that the use of animals in research is ethical. This research is important b ecause it will help to bring to an end or minimize the strife that exists between scientists and groups that argue that the use of animals in research is unethical. ... Â  Evidence supporting the use of animals in research According to the British Royal Society (2004), virtually all achievements in the field of medicine during the 20th century are credited to the use of animals. Through their use, there have been great breakthroughs in the development of vaccines, antibiotics, anesthesia and numerous medicines for treating various diseases. Biomedical research would have required the use of human volunteers for testing. However, it should be noted that some of the experiments are very risky and the subjects could die and this could lead many legal issues. Therefore, animals provide a good alternative that allows scientists to observe reactions and do experimental manipulations on them in order to investigate mechanisms of normal functions and disease. This is the rationale behind the use of animals used in research. Apart from the risky nature of some experiments, there are also some other reasons that make the use of animals in research inevitable . The idea of shifting to the use of non-animal subjects in scientific experiments is very attractive and agreeable. However, there are some types of experiments that cannot be performed through the use of such alternatives. According to the Institute for Laboratory Animal Research (2004), even the most sophisticated type of computers are not able to model the interactions between cells, tissues, organs, molecules and organisms, and the environment. There are many types of researchers in which animals have been used. These are toxicology testing, pure research, basic or pure research, applied research, drug testing, education, defence, and breeding. Basic/pure research is used to investigate how organisms function, develop and behave.