A crueldade animal na indústria cosmética: o uso de animais em pesquisas laboratoriais e seus reflexos no âmbito jurídico

Abstract

This study was carried through bibliographic research to verify and understand the scientific experiments in non-human animals, from the beginning, with Descartes’ studies, to the current situation of animal experimentation, especially in the cosmetological research. The evolution of the law applied to non-human animals in a global context is explored to understand it in the Brazilian legal system, and the understanding of the concept of person applied to them. The use of non-human animals in scientific experiments is investigated, their history and importance on the world stage, in addition to addressing cosmetic tests on animals and their alternative methods. This work seeks to ascertain the national and international legal standards, which deal with the rights and protections of animals, applying them to cases of cosmetic tests on guinea pigs. The use of non-human animals in laboratory experiments is due to their similarity to the human organism, so that it is possible to approximate the results in animals for humans. However, exactly for this reason, because of their similarity to humans, knowing that they have a nervous system and are able to feel pain, they need protection against suffering and ill-treatment, and spared from the pain that no human being would face against their will. Finally, this study also presents the theory of minimizing damage in scientific experiments with non-human animals, as an alternative method to tests, the Brazilian legislation that provides on this subject and the growing wave of abolition of the use of non-human animals in tests in the cosmetic industry around the world.