15 Things About Twins That Parents May Find Interesting

The unique bond which always existed between twins, the fact that they can think and sometimes even feel the same have always fascinated people.

Here are 10 interesting things about twins that you most likely didn`t knew.

Twins Start Playing in the Womb from Week 14

Examining a 3D ultrasound image of a uterus with 5 pairs of twins, a team of doctors from Italy found that the fetuses start to interact with the mother`s tummy as early as week 14 of pregnancy, reaching out to each other through the uterine walls and “socializing” with each other.

If You Separate 2 Twins at Birth, They`ll Develop Similarly

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, identical twins were separated at birth in a number of various studies that were considered immoral and even condemned afterwards, but which eventually proven that a lot about the twin similarities come from the genetic inheritance. Almost everything – health, personality, interests, intelligence, values or success – if practically influenced to a particular degree by genetics. That is also why at maturity, even through twins might have grown in distinct environments, they are similar in a lot of aspects.

Identical Twins May Get Sick Differently

In 1983, 2 twin brothers were infected with HIV by mistake through a blood transfusion. Several decades later, one of them still has a strong immune system, while the other one is still sick. Some researchers from United Kingdom have discovered that the immunity of twins behaves rather differently depending on the kind of pathogens, microbes or bacteria which are exposed to the twin brothers after birth.

22% of Twins Are Left-Handed

Regarding the general population, the percentage of left-handed people drops to as low as 10%. By now, experts didn`t found any explanation for this particular phenomenon. In 18% of cases, if one twin is right-handed, the other one is left-handed.

Mothers of Twins Tend to Live More

There`s an actual good news for mothers of twins. Even if now you may feel like you are more exhausted that you barely think you can get through until the evening, you should know that you`ll certainly catch the evening, and the next – all of them actually. According to most recent statistics, mothers of twins tend to live longer.

Twins Might Have Different Birthdays

The biggest distance between the birthdays of twins is of 85 days. How was this possible? The explanation is that one of the brothers was born earlier due to some medical complications, while the other one has remained in the womb where he was able to develop and be born at term. It may also be possible for twins to have different birthdays if the mother goes into labor near midnight. If the birthday is at the end of the month, or even in New Year`s Eve, twins may be born in different months or years.

Twins May Have Different Fathers

It`s possible for a woman to have twins with 2 different men. The phenomenon is known as heteropaternal superfecundation. This occurs when the woman releases a few eggs, has relationships with 2 men in a very short range, and each egg is fertilized by a different spermatozoid. It`s unusual and rare, but not impossible.

Twins Create Their Own Language

Did you know that twins have their own language? Almost 40% of twin pairs manage to develop their own language and communicate to each other. This language is known only by them.

Identical Twins Have Different Fingerprints

Although they are identical, fingerprints aren`t among the characteristics that monozygotic twins have in common. On a detailed analysis, it can be noticed that the fingerprints of identical twins are different.

Dairy Products Increase your Chances of Having Twins

Here`s a wonderful news for dairy lovers. According to a recent study, if you have the tendency to eat lots of dairy product, then your chances of having twins increase by 5% compared with those how don`t eat dairies. So, be careful what you choose to eat from now on!

Fraternal Twins Can Even of Different Races

It`s a very rare phenomenon (the chances of something like this happening are of 1 in 1.000.000), but when parents are of different races, and the mother becomes pregnant with twins, she might have the incredible surprise of having children with different colors at birth.

The Navels of Twins Are Always Different

If you aren`t yet sure how to distinguish your twins, then look for their navel. The reason is rather simple – the chances for their navels to look different are quite high, because they are the result of the doctor`s cut, so they are unique.

The Greatest Combined Weight of a Set of Twins is of 12.5 Kg

The small giants were born in Arkansas almost a century ago in 1927, and by now their record wasn`t yet been matched. Each of them weighed about 6.5 kg.

Twins Weigh Less than Normal Babies

Averagely, twins have around 2.5 kg, and not 3.5 kg like most babies have. This is mainly due to the fact that frequently twins are born before 40 weeks of pregnancy.

Strange Statistics

One third of twins all over the world are identical twins, 1/3 of them are twins of distinct sexes and 1/3 of them are twins of the same sex. Of the identical twin brothers, half are boy/boy and another half of them are girl/girl. From the fraternal twins of same sex, half of them are boy/boy and half girl/girl.