Torture in tea?

[Guest FTLdude]

 

 

• 95% of all pharmaceuticals that pass animal trials, fail in human trials
  
• Penicillin was delayed by 20 years because it killed lab animals (how many humans died?)
  
• The National Institutes of Health have reported that more than 80 HIV/AIDS vaccines that have passed animal testing have failed in human clinical trials
  
• Animal Experimentation continues because it is beneficial to the huge Medical, Technology, Research, Drug Company alliance that is increasingly intervening in our lives and our health.
  
• For decades it was denied that asbestos caused disease in humans because it didn't in lab animals.
  
• Asprin, Digitalis (heart drug), insulin, and penicillin would be banned if results from animal experimentation were accurate.
  
• If we had relied on animal tests we would still believe that humans don’t need vitamin C, that smoking doesn’t cause cancer and alcohol doesn’t cause liver damage.
  
• Blood transfusions were delayed 200 years by animal studies, corneal transplants were delayed 90 years.
  
• At least 50 drugs on the market cause cancer in lab animals. They are allowed because it is admitted that animal tests are not relevant.
  

 

I am not a scientist, but I do know that there are alternatives to many of the studies/tests done on animals without wasting time and money. I recently asked one of my clients, who worked in animal research before moving on to human research, if medical students are encouraged to find different ways to do research. The answer was that they are taught what the current model is: animal testing.

 

 

Michael, your client who gave you this information, when you say he did animal research and then human research, what type of researcher exactly is he? A biologist? biochemist? or a chemical engineer for a pharmaceutical company? I'm curious to know what he meant when he said that medical students are taught the animal testing model. I know first hand that medical students do not conduct experiments on animals. In gross anatomy, the bodies that medical students work with and dissect are dead humans who come from a morgue. And the human bodies aren't just arbitrarily brought in and cut up. They are either donated by the individuals themselves before they die, or by the families, or by the government if the person was unidentifiable or at large and has no known relatives to claim the body. In some cases, where the person had a unique or interesting condition, the medical schools may ask the families for permission to use the body for research and after the students are done with it they put it back together and send it to the funeral home where aesthetics are applied so that the person may even have an open casket funeral and no one who sees the body would ever know that it had been dissected---exactly the same thing that a pathologist does during an autopsy. In other cases, the bodies are cremated afterwards.

 

I understand and admire your commitment to the animal rights cause, but hopefully you're aware that some of the information that has been put out there to attack the medical and scientific research communities is misleading and even inaccurate. I'm not saying that some physicians and research corporations don't go beyond the boundaries of ethics and established legal guidelines, but most don't. Not these days. The trouble they can get into can not only shut them down for good but can also bring forbidding fines and even prison time.

 

Organic chemistry is a dynamic science, and researchers are always coming up with new ways to compound carbon with the other elements. But, modern scientists who research these things dont just arbitrarily mix stuff up in a lab and start testing the products on animals the way they used to do long ago. For reasons of ethics and economy, pharmaceutical research is now a very controlled process, and much of it is initially done with cells cultured in a lab and does not involve any animal testing at all. However, in a few cases they do use animals but this has declined dramatically over the years and continues to decline. They begin with the principles of organic and biochemistry and apply these principles to test a theory. They know all the properties of the elements on the periodic table and how these properties can affect organic life. They know how the properties of each element can change when combined with other elements. They know how the properties of combined elements affect cells differently than they do individually. They know that a compound created from an element with a certain number of carbon atoms in one experiment is not the same thing as a compound created from the same element with the same number of carbon atoms in another experiment UNLESS the arrangement of the carbons in both chains is identical. They have a basic idea of the therapeutic effect that the new compound (the newly developed drug) might have on a person. They may also have an idea of some possible negative effects. What they DON'T know is how much of the compound will be therapeutic and how much of it will be toxic. They also don't know ALL the possible side effects. They cannot begin know these things until they test the drug on an animal, and later, a person.

 

I am a staunch advocate of medical science and pharmaceuticals because they obviously help a lot of people. For this reason I can't say that I am against a minimal amount of animal testing if it is absolutely necessary and if it can help save human life, and as long as its not cruel. Yes, as a sciencehead I must defend my community because I've studied evidence of Evolutionary theory, and it IS true that Life has always been mostly about the survival of the fittest. Mike, look at Mother Nature...particularly the way animals live in the wild. The carnivores hunt and kill one another for food. They always have. Its how they survive. The dinosaurs did the same thing. There's nothing evil about it. Its the rhythym of Life.

[adriano46]

FTLDude, thanks for a refreshing reply that is clear, concise, and presents the other side accurately. BRAVO.

[+ bigjoey]

Unfortunately, FTLDude is right that some animal testing is necessary. It should be done with the least amount of pain necessary and kept to a minimum but it is necessary.

[Michael Vincenzo]

Victory for animals tortured for tea!

 

I know this is an old post, but I thought I would share some great news! Thank you to anyone who participated in this action alert. Things can change when people stand together!

 

This is a letter from Ingrid Newkirk, President and CEO of PETA:

 

Victory! I'm thrilled to announce that after more than 40,000 people worldwide, including supporters like you, took action against the makers of Lipton tea and after representatives from PETA and our affiliates in India and Europe flew to London to meet with Unilever—the world's largest tea maker including the Lipton and PG tips brands—the company has agreed to end all non-required animal testing for their teas and tea-based beverages worldwide.

 

With this victory, the suffering of animals for Lipton and PG tips teas ends. As you know, the company behind Lipton tea cut holes into rats' intestines and fed them tea ingredients through a tube in their throats; infected piglets with E. coli toxin and cut their intestines apart while they were still alive; killed mice by suffocating them and breaking their necks; cut off rabbits' heads; and conducted other cruel tests that involved tormenting and killing animals simply to study the health effects of its tea products and ingredients. Not one of the experiments that the company conducted was legally required for beverage makers, and regulators have stated that animal tests are not required to prove a health claim about a food or beverage product.

 

Thanks to all our members like you who called, e-mailed, and boycotted Lipton tea products!

 

Please take a moment to thank Lipton for its prompt and compassionate decision by e-mailing the company using its contact form.

 

With your help, we look forward to many more victories for animals who suffer and die in laboratories. Please remember to buy only products, such as Lipton tea, that are not tested on animals.

 

Thank you for your compassion for all animals.

 

Very truly yours,

 

 

Ingrid E. Newkirk

President

PET