What kinds of tests are done?
For product safety purposes, there are two basic types of tests used to assess the risks of routine or accidental exposure to various products. Acute-toxicity tests evaluate the risk of short-term exposure through normal use, accidental contact with the eyes or skin, and accidental ingestion. Chronic-toxicity tests assess the effects of long-term exposure–often at low levels–to certain substances. Here, researchers are looking at such things as the potential to cause cancer, birth defects, and developmental abnormalities. The two tests that probably have caused the most public outcry are both examples of acute-toxicity tests. The Draize eye irritancy test uses rabbits to estimate the ability of a test substance to irritate or damage the eye. This involves putting the test substance into one of the rabbit’s eyes and then scoring changes in various parts of the eye as compared to the untreated eye over a 7-day period. This test was the subject of a major protest campaign in 1980, which
