The Flaws and Human Harms of Animal Experimentation

Abstract

Nonhuman animal ("animal") experimentation is typically defended by arguments that it is reliable, that animals provide suffi ciently good models of human biology and diseases to yield relevant information, and that, consequently, its use provides major human health benefi ts. I demonstrate that a growing body of scientifi c literature critically assessing the validity of animal experimentation generally (and animal modeling specifi cally) raises important concerns about its reliability and predictive value for human outcomes and for understanding human physiology. The unreliability of animal experimentation across a wide range of areas undermines scientifi c arguments in favor of the practice. Additionally, I show how animal experimentation often signifi cantly harms humans through misleading safety studies, potential abandonment of effective therapeutics, and direction of resources away from more effective testing methods. The resulting evidence suggests that the collective harms and costs to humans from animal experimentation outweigh potential benefi ts and that resources would be better invested in developing human-based testing methods.

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