Mind-Blowing Facts You Never Knew About Twins

16 Mind-Blowing Facts You Never Knew About Twins

twins

 

There are more twins being born in the US now than ever before. One of the main reasons is ongoing trend of waiting to have children. Also, milk. Yes, milk. Aside from the special circumstances that give way to twins, their development is incredibly unique from the womb to adulthood. These are some of the most interesting things there are to know about twins.

Twins can have different biological fathers

topwallpapers10.comIn 2009, Mia Washington gave birth to twins with two different fathers, a one-in-a-million occurrence. One month, Mia released two eggs instead of one. Her two sexual partners each fertilized one of the eggs, resulting in two babies with two dads. today.com

Trained sniffer dogs can tell the difference between identical twins

huffpost.comAlthough identical twins have been known to trick even parents, they can’t fool dogs. Researchers found that trained German shepherds could tell the difference between between identical twins because an individual’s odor is affected by outside factors such as food and infections.plosone.org

Separated twins can live eerily similar lives

cdn.sheknows.comJim Lewis and Jim Springer were four weeks old when they were separated, with each of the twins going to different adoptive families. It was later discovered that their lives shared some truly remarkable similarities. Both had a dog named Toy as kids. Both married twice, first to women named Linda and second to women named Betty. Both drove Chevys, smoked Salem cigarettes, and drank Miller Lite. science.howstuffworks.com

Women who give birth to twins may live longer

topwallpapers10.comWomen who give birth to twins are generally healthier and stronger to begin with than those who don’t. Some believe that twins are an evolutionary adaptation, where the healthiest of mothers take the chance to pass on double the genes at once. livescience.com

Tall women are more likely to have twins

cdn.sheknows.comThe Long Island Jewish Medical Center discovered that taller women have more insulin-like growth factor (IGF) – a protein that increases a woman’s chance of ovulating. The more IGF a woman has, the greater the chance that she will become pregnant with twins. Other research found that women who gave birth to twins were on average one inch taller than other mothers. livescience.com

Women who eat a lot of dairy are also more likely to have twins

topwallpapers10.comA study in the Journal of Reproductive Medicine compared twin birth rates from vegan and non-vegan mothers. Those who consumed dairy were five times more likely to have twins. Cows, like humans, also produce IGF and release it into their milk, which the women consume.huffingtonpost.com

Twins interact with each other in the womb

twin womb

huffingtonpost.comThe University of Padova recently discovered that twins are as close in the womb as they are outside of it. At 14 weeks of gestation, twins were seen reaching for each other. Four weeks later, twins in the womb touched each other more often than they touched their own bodies. The twins were gentle to each other and made distinct gestures toward each other. huffingtonpost.com

Twins that are exact reflections of each other are called Mirror Image Twins

images.wisegeek.comAround 25% of identical twins develop directly facing each other, meaning they become exact reflections of each other. One is often left-handed, while the other is right-handed. They may also have birthmarks on the opposite sides of their bodies. huffingtonpost.com

Some conjoined twins can hear each other’s thoughts and see through each other’s eyes

wordpress.comKrista and Tatiana Hogan are attached at the head and share a thalamus – the part of the brain that controls physical sensations and motor functions. As a result, the girls can see through each other’s eyes and hear each other’s thoughts. They can also feel and see what the other one does. dailymail.co.uk

A mother’s body adjusts uniquely for twins

%20A%20mother%27s%20body%20adjusts%20uniquely%20for%20twins

blogspot.comA mother’s chest will heat up or cool down to regulate the temperature of a baby held on her chest. When a mother holds twins, each breast can independently adjust its own temperature to account for each child. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The highest rate of twin births is in Central Africa

cdn2.babyzone.comWith more than 18 twins per 1,000 births, Central Africa has by far the highest twinning rates. It’s especially high in Benin, where 27.9 out of every 1000 births are twins. The lowest number of twin births can be found in Asia and Latin America, with rates below 8 births for every 1,000. The United States, Europe and Australia range from 9 to 16. livescience.com

One of the easiest ways to tell identical twins apart is their belly buttons

%20One%20of%20the%20easiest%20ways%20to%20tell%20identical%20twins%20apart%20is%20their%20belly%20buttons

softsup.comBelly buttons are scars from the detachment of the umbilical cord, so they aren’t caused by genetics and each one is slightly unique. rd.com

The chances of having twins is far higher than it was 30 years ago

images2.fanpop.comThe birth rate for twins has increased by 76% since 1980. Experts believe that this may be because older women are having more children, and women in their thirties are more likely to have twins than women in their twenties. rd.com

Identical twins do not have identical fingerprints

bhmpics.comFingerprints are not solely shaped by DNA. Although they start with the same fingerprints, during weeks 6 to 13 of pregnancy, when the twins start to move, they touch the amniotic sac which forms unique ridges and lines. huffingtonpost.com

Identical twins can make master criminals

static.ddmcdn.comApart from their fingerprints, identical twins are 99.99% identical on a DNA level. In January, 2009, $6.8 million worth of jewelry was stolen in Berlin. The single suspect (who was wearing gloves) left behind sweat beads, which police extracted DNA from and tracked down to two people – Hassan and Abbas O. – identical twins. Both denied responsibility, accused the other, and because police couldn’t identify which of the twins the DNA belonged to, both ended up walking free. content.time.com

Nearly half of twins invent their own languages

%20Nearly%20half%20of%20twins%20invent%20their%20own%20languages

telegraph.co.ukBabies that are extremely close have been known to form autonomous languages that only they can understand. Since the babies must be extremely close, autonomous languages are far more common in twins, with around 40% of twins forming their own languages before they learn one that we can understand. Below is an adorable example… huffingtonpost.com

We can only assume they’re planning the perfect crime. Too cute!

Comments

One thought on “Mind-Blowing Facts You Never Knew About Twins

  1. Really rather interesting web-site. Incredibly pleasant in the direction of go through and Really considerably fascinating content material. Of course period incorporates not still occur back again and greet

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published.