These Experiments Really Suck

From the annals of “asinine things vivisectors do” comes a proposed experiment that might make you want to curl up in a fetal position with your blankie.

The National Toxicology Program (NTP) wants to spend millions of taxpayer dollars on new animal testing of soy infant formula in order to explain adverse effects seen in animals. All together now: Huh?

The NTP has simply become a black hole of animal testing, with proposals to test everything from green tea to asbestos on animals. Despite the fact that soy formula has been safely given to millions of babies (including yours truly) for more than 60 years, the NTP wants to test it on animals because previous tests of a single ingredient in soy formula—genistein—caused some adverse developmental effects in rodents (who metabolize genistein differently from how humans do, BTW). Undeterred by the fact that generations of humans have grown big and strong after being nursed with soy formula, the NTP is apparently determined to make soy formula safe for Remy.

A PETA representative will be pointing all this out to the NTP’s Board of Scientific Counselors at a meeting on Monday. You and I can add our two cents by taking a minute to let the NTP know that we think there are better ways that they can spend their time and our money.

Written by Alisa Mullins