While scrolling through Facebook the other day, I came across a video that made me really upset. There was a monkey, thin with all sorts of patches in its fur, and his skin was red and blotchy. Wondering why this creature looked so sad and helpless, I read that these abnormal features were caused by testing for cosmetic and medical products. Being someone who has used makeup for a decade now, I was blissfully ignorant to the fact that a lot of the makeup I use every day is tested on animals before it can touch my face. Looking at this defenseless animal I realized that I'm not the only one being effected by my choice in blush or eyeliner.
It was then that I decided to start using only cruelty free makeup brands. For those who don't know, a "cruelty free" product does not do any testing on animals. This is different from "vegan" products, which don't contain any elements that are created by animals (milk, eggs etc.). I also wanted to get a little background on why we even test on animals in the first place.
In 1938, the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act ordered that new drugs would be tested on animals to make sure that they were safe to use on humans. They decided this after a drug called Elixir Sulfanoamide caused over a hundred deaths. At this point, and still today, animals were used not only to test medical drugs, but also cosmetics, household cleaning products and a number of other everyday items.
This leads to the question of what animals are testing what products. CrueltyFreeKitty.com says that typically, bunnies mice and rats are used when it comes to cosmetics. Dogs, usually beagles since they are gentle in nature, are used for medical testing. They often have to go through invasive tests for cardiology and bone studies. Monkeys and other primates are used in pretty much every study.
Of course, I'm not dumb. Products should be tested to make sure they are safe for us to use, but there are a number of other ways this could be done without causing harm to animals. There are over 7,000 safe ingredients that cosmetic companies could use to create their products. Since these ingredients have already been tested and proven safe, the cosmetic companies don't need to test their products, saving time, money and animal lives. There are also alternative methods that technology has given us that don't involve the use of animals. We have options like in-vitro, or "test tube", testing, computer models or even replicating human organs on microchips.
When I made the choice to go cruelty free, I panicked a little at the thought of having to toss out my $45 makeup palettes. Luckily, more brands than I realized are considered cruelty free. Some of these brands include Tarte, Urban Decay, ELF, Kat Von D and a number of other popular names.
It's going to take some time and a lot of research, but I'm hoping to integrate only cruelty free products into my everyday life. This includes stopping the use of products that test on animals in skincare (sorry, Bath & Body Works), and cleaning products (no more Clorox for me). Hopefully in time all brands will get on this train and stop harming animals in the process of creating their products.
