Many people just love twins. It’s a fact. Lots of women, especially, want to experience what it feels like to be able to carry two little babies in their bellies at the same time and give birth to two little adorable human beings.
Now, as much as people may love to have twins they can call their own, there are certain facts about them that they may not know. So we have taken it upon ourselves to acquaint you with these fascinating, albeit strange facts about twins.
Ok, so let’s take the ride. Some Strange Facts About Twins
1. Twins can be conceived by two different fathers
Really? Unbelievable, right? Well, it is true. Twins can have different fathers even though they share the same mother and actually live in her belly at the same time for nine months.
So how does it happen?
The process if called Heteropaternal superfecundation and it occurs quite rarely. Heteropaternal superfecundation occurs when a woman has sex with different men during her ovulation period. When this happens, it is completely possible for the sperm of both men to fertilize an egg each and bam!…result in twins.
So even though they are twins, the babies now have different fathers. This is, however, a very rare occurrence.
2. Twins actually interact with each other in their mother’s womb.
Yes, you read that right and it is no joke. Twins do interact with themselves right inside the womb.
This revelation was made after a research was carried out in 2011 by researchers studying at the Umberto Castiello of the University of Padova in Italy. The researchers made the discovery after studying 3D videos of twins in their mother’s womb.
3. Twins can help their mother live longer
Does this tempt you to try having twins? We bet it will. Yes, having twins can actually help mothers live longer.
How do we know? Well, this pleasant discovery was made after some researchers at the University of Utah found out that the mothers of twins tend to live longer than moms without twins researchers when they embarked on a study of birth and death records between 1800 and 1970.
4. Some conjoined twins feel and even taste what the other one does.
Conjoined twins are twins who are joined at certain parts of their bodies at birth and they are a rare sight to behold. Over time, conjoined twins have been born around the world, causing quite a stir among those who see them.
Now, a new revelation has shown that these twins can actually feel and even taste what the other person does.
Popular writer, Susan Dominus made the observations in a piece she wrote for The New York Times about two conjoined twins identified as Krista and Tatiana Hogan.
Dominus observed that the twins, who are attached at the head, were connected through a “thalamic bridge.” The thalamic bridge is actually the part of the brain that ‘acts as a sort of “neural switchboard” and filters most sensory input’. According to scientists, the fact that they are joined at the “thalamic bridge” makes it possible for one of the twins to feel what the other twin is experiencing and to understand each other’s thoughts.
5. Twins speak their own language
Now this one is a little creepy. Don’t you agree? Well, be ready to accept the fact as it is.
Twin babies do have a language that they speak after they are born and they use it to communicate with themselves. The language which sometimes appears to be senseless babbling between the two kids has a name; it is called cryptophasia.
Cryptophasia is a language which over time, is developed between the twin siblings and they are the only ones who can understand it.
However, it is revealed that this made up languages subtly spoken between the twins often go away as soon as childhood is over and as soon as they have been able to learn a real language.
A research which was published in a journal of the Institute of General Linguistics revealed that the twin babies who often spend a lot of time together, end up using each other to learn vocabulary.
In fact, according to the research, it is now estimated that no less than 40 percent of twins actually create a private language over time during their childhood.
6. Tall women are more likely to have twins.
Yes, you didn’t read wrong! If you are a tall woman, you stand a better chance of having twin babies. However, this does not mean you should panic if you are not too tall and want twin babies.
This discovery was made by Gary Steinman, MD, Ph.D., who happens to be an attending physician at Long Island Jewish (LIJ) Medical Center. Dr. Gary revealed that taller women have more of what is called the insulin-like growth factor (IGF). Now, having high levels of the IGF is what helps in increasing the sensitivity of a woman’s ovaries and thus improve a woman’s chance of ovulating.
According to Dr. Gary, if a woman has more IGF, she has a greater chance of becoming pregnant with twin babies in her womb.
7. Some twins are mirror images of each other
Wow! Mirror images? Have you ever imagines this? Well, it’s true. Twin siblings are, sometimes, the mirror images of each other. This means that what one twin has on their body part, can appear on the opposite part of the other.
An example of this is that if one twin has a birthmark on their right cheek, the other may end up having the same mark on their left cheek.
According to science, it is possible for twins to be mirror images of each other if a fertilized egg splits later than usual.
8. The Vanishing Twin Syndrome.
The vanishing twin syndrome refers to the “disappearance” of one twin from the womb. No, it is not magic. Let us explain.
The Vanishing Twin Syndrome occurs when one twin appears to vanish in a woman’s uterus during pregnancy because of a miscarriage. A woman who is pregnant with twins can miscarry one of her babies but the other one will be fine. Usually, when this happens, only one twin is affected. The other twin ends up absorbing the fetal tissue of the “dead” twin. This makes it look like the other twin has “disappeared” from the womb.
According to research, as much as 15% to 20% of all twin pregnancies usually end up miscarrying one fetus.