Actor Norman Reedus Calls On FDA To Ban Animal Testing For Cosmetics

Norman Reedus, who plays crossbow wielding zombie slayer Daryl Dixon in The Walking Dead, has teamed with Cruelty Free International, the only organization campaigning for a global ban on animal testing for cosmetics, to encourage fans to end cosmetic testing on animals. The star is among a host of other celebrities who support the cause, including British comedian Ricky Gervais, Paul McCartney, Mayim Bialik and Game of Thrones star Peter Dinklage.

“Scores of countries around the world are beating the US to become cruelty-free by banning cosmetics tests on animals. Nobody wants rabbits or guinea-pigs to suffer for our vanity, least of all the animals. Let’s stop their suffering right here, right now. Join me in supporting the Cruelty Free International call to Congress and the FDA to bring an end to animal testing for cosmetics in the US,” he said in a statement.

In March 2013, animal tests were banned for new cosmetics sold in all 28 countries in the European Union making it the most rigorous far-reaching animal testing ban in the world. In March 2014, India joined countries like Brazil, Australia and New Zealand when it banned testing for cosmetic products and their ingredients on animals. Five months later India also imposed a ban on importing such products that test on animals and thus became the first country in south Asia to do so.

Unfortunately, while “the US FDA supports the development and use of alternatives to whole-animal testing as well as adherence to the most humane methods available within the limits of scientific capability when animals are used for testing the safety of cosmetic products and advocates replacement of animal tests with alternative methodologies that do not employ the use of animals”, “it remains the responsibility of the manufacturer to substantiate the safety of both ingredients and finished cosmetic products prior to marketing”.

Is animal testing for cosmetics necessary and a valid method? Are there no alternatives to save the animals from the painful procedure and agonizing tests? Certainly, there are options that can better predict human reactions.

Some alternatives to the use of animals in testing include in vitro (test tube) test methods and models based on human cell and tissue cultures, computerized patient-drug databases and virtual drug trials, computer models and simulations, stem cell and genetic testing methods, non-invasive imaging techniques such as MRIs and CT Scans, and microdosing (in which humans are given very low quantities of a drug to test the effects on the body on the cellular level, without affecting the whole body system).

Will you join Norman and take a stand to protect animals from a senseless and gruesome end?

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