Of Mice and Marathoners

Why are long-distance runners so good at what they do? Evolutionary researchers say they have found the secret: a “broken” gene.

They call it broken because the CMAH gene is found in both humans and chimps, but it doesn’t lead to the production of a sugar molecule in humans as it does in chimps. Because these evolutionists believe we evolved from primates, they assume the gene “lost” this function.

When it comes to a gene that help us run marathons, the creation worldview expects design where secular scientists assume something is broken.

Yet these same scientists now believe this broken gene somehow gave early humans endurance for long-distance running, enabling them to catch prey and survive.

To study the effects of the human gene, they inserted it in mice and found it enabled the mice to run farther and faster than their normal counterparts. The test mice had developed more fine blood vessels in their muscles, which enabled them to use oxygen more efficiently—a necessity for endurance running.

So the term broken seems to be, at the very least, premature. We know something has to be wrong with people who choose to run 26 miles in a couple of hours, but the CMAH gene isn’t it. It is much more reasonable to believe that God created this gene in humans for a purpose. After all, it seems to give us amazing abilities that speak of a loving Creator’s design, not a defective gene.

Article was taken from Answers magazine, January–February, 2019, 23.