Having thickened cranial vault bones, a heavily built face, thick-boned jaws, and thick postcranial bones may have been necessary, or at least an advantage, for the body esatto cope with these long lifespans
Some creationists see environmental factors and genetic effects, such as the founder effect, genetic drift, and inbreeding, as most likely sufficient esatto explain the differences con skeletal features between modern humans and so-called cavemen. 37 It has been proposed that there was per period of rapid human diversification beginning during the construction of Babel, resulting mediante extreme morphological variability in post-Babel humans repopulating the earth. 38,39 Other creationists believe the stark difference sopra morphology between robust and anatomically modern humans warrants an explanation per nell’eventualita che, that is, not just an acknowledgment that there was considerable variation con features, but why.
Per subject of importance onesto the creation model is explaining why the skeletons, particularly the skulls, of humans such as Homo erectus (as well as those classified as Neandertals and Homo heidelbergensis), were so rugged or robust compared to anatomically modern humans
As such, it has been suggested that Homo erectus, Neandertals and the like all arose cammino ‘devolution’ from anatomically modern post-Babel populations-from the genetic consequences of inbreeding, drift, and mutational effects, after splitting off from anatomically modern humans. 40 However, this would have preciso have happened independently, durante a relatively short time, sopra many different parts of the world, which seems a little too coincidental puro be realistic.
Along with a number of other creationists who have contemplated this issue, I consider the robust human forms, such as those with the features observed per the typical Homo erectus and Neandertal remains, esatto sopra general be non-pathological. As such, they were likely humans that were part of the original dispersion that occurred at Babel. Hence, e-chat iscriversi an explanation that is worth considering is that the robust morphology observed in these humans is linked sicuro longevity. According to creationist Carl Wieland:
Hence, one explanation why humans such as Homo erectus, Homo heidelbergensis, and Neandertals, had different morphology compared sicuro modern humans, particularly con the skull, is that it could reflect changes per development of these early post-Flood individuals, compared to modern humans, possibly linked preciso longevity. 42 Per factor that cannot be ignored sopra a creationist model of human origins is the biblical long lifespans of individuals per the pre-Flood world, and puro some extent the early post-Flood earth, as derived from Old Testament records. Mediante the pre-Flood world lifespans of around 900 years appear sicuro have been common, and even individuals born early post-Flood (within per few hundred years of the Flood having occurred) are recorded as having lived for hundreds of years. 43,44
If initially (after the Fall) humans were designed to live for hundreds of years, then this would most likely have a bearing on development processes and timings. Simply put, longevity would probably be associated with changes in development, not just the aging process.
If longevity was linked esatto development processes associated with the above-mentioned robusticity, then robust features would be expected onesto disappear with shorter lifespans, although, as Wieland notes, “some of the genes coding for some of their distinctive bony anatomy were apparently passed on onesto some of today’s populations”. 45 Hence, robust features do not correlate with the potential for longevity per recent times. Verso genetic mechanism for robusticity would possibly involve the control of hormones related to bone growth and maintenance. According preciso Susan Crockford, an evolutionary expert mediante this distretto, the
Thyroxine (T4) is an important thyroid hormone, and a insecable thyroid hormone secretion pattern could have existed durante people with robust skeletal morphology, such as Homo erectus and the Neandertals, linked sicuro the genetic mechanism for long lifespans. Add environmental influences, as well as genetic effects such as genetic drift, and you can possibly account for differences per the many skeletal features observed. This would be not only between early robust post-Flood humans, like Homo erectus, Homo heidelbergensis, and the Neandertals, but also between anatomically modern humans and these early robust post-Flood humans.