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Botox - things the cosmetic surgeons won't tell you:
Over the past few years, the use of botox to “erase” wrinkles has steadily grown in popularity. It is estimated over 100,000 treatments are done in the UK, every year.
From TV programs like “10 years younger” to glossy magazines, botox is being promoted as a quick-fix face-lift. Yet this quick-fix carries a very heavy price tag ….
- Every batch of botox used in cosmetic procedures, is tested on 100 mice, using the LD50 test.
- This continues despite the UK and EU ban on the testing of cosmetic products on animals.
- And despite the LD50 test no longer being used for testing cosmetic products.
- FRAME whose report “Growing Old Disgracefully” [2003] first uncovered the use of the LD50 test for botulinum products for cosmetic use, have now also reported a notable increase in the use of the LD50 test. 1
- Estimates indicate around 50% of the botulinum toxin produced is destined for cosmetic procedures, necessitating further animal testing.
The continued use of animals to test botox destined for cosmetic purposes is in direct contradiction to the UK governments own legislation banning the use of animals to test cosmetic products or ingredients.
What you can do to help:
- First and foremost boycott cosmetically used Botox
- Please join our Boycott Botox group on social networking site Facebook. Simply by clicking to join this group you will be helping to send a clear message that animal testing of Botox for cosmetic purposes isn't acceptable, and it will also help hugely in spreading the word - most people don't realise that this testing continues. To "Use Your mouse to say "No!" to Botox on Facebook" - please click here
Since launching "Boycott Botox" we have received huge support voicing disapproval of the animal testing of cosmetic botox. Here are just a few of the comments.
- If like Naturewatch and FRAME you believe that botox for cosmetic purposes should not be tested on animals, and that UK legislation banning the testing of cosmetic ingredients on animals should be consistently applied, please e-mail us with your views, putting “Boycott Botox” in the subject line, send to csg@naturewatch.org.
- Spread the word, write to your local paper, magazines pointing out the heavy cost in terms of animal suffering that botox incurs.
Further key facts:
- Botulinum Type A toxin, from which Botox is derived, is a biological product, produced in batches by fermenting the same bacteria responsible for botulinum poisoning.
- Though no longer used to test cosmetics, the LD50 test is still used for batch testing of biological products.
- In order to test the potency of each new batch of toxin, the toxin is injected into the abdomens of mice, to determine the amount of toxin that kills half of a given test group of mice (the LD50 test), this can take up to 3-4 days.
1 http://www.frame.org.uk/page.php?pg_id=162
