LD-50 stands for the median lethal dose. This means that in a study of 100 mice 50 will die when given a specific dose of something. LD-50 helps scientists determine the toxicity of a substance. Everything is lethal, it just depends on how much of the substance someone consumes. Even water is lethal. The LD-50 for water is, roughly 90 grams per kilogram of body weight. When this much water is consumed the blood vessels in your body explode causing death. We see this a-lot with the ingestion of ecstasy because it makes you very thirsty. You may be asking now, why is this important? The measurement of LD-50 is important for the prediction of human lethal dose and for the prediction of the symptomatology of poisoning after acute overdosing in a human. In a dermal LD-50 tests a portion of the test animal's coat is shaved and the substance applied directly to the skin. There are also intravenous LD-50 tests in which the substance is injected into the animal. The testing of LD-50s on animals is quite cruel and is a waste of animals but it is very important to know so that we can protect the human race. If we didn't test LD-50's people would overdose on pain killers and caffeine on the daily. Scientists have tested DDT which is a pesticide and they have found that is is highly toxic to mammals. That is why DDT has been banned in many countries. This is the same for Atrazine, another pesticide, which is illegal in the US. Make sure you always check the dose-age before you ingest something.
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