Opinion/commentary Piece

  Twins have been around since the beginning of time and have fascinated mankind. I happen to be a twin and I wanted to know more about it, how common it is and the different types of twins. Twins are very interesting and there are so many different factors to how they are created and the different types of twins.

I knew that there were the two main types of twins, fraternal and identical but there are seven different types of twins: identical, fraternal, half-identical, mirror image twins, mixed chromosome twins, superfecundation, and superfetation. Identical and fraternal twins are the most common but the other five are definitely not impossible.

           I had no idea that twins do not have to be born on the same day; the longest birth gap between twins ever recorded is 85 days. This mostly happened when one twin is born early because of aging complications and the other twin is left in the womb for further development, which is very unhealthy for the first born twin, but beneficial for the second.

            About 25% of twins are called a mirror image twin which means that they are identical but are in a mirror image reflection. Scientists think that this has to do with the egg splitting later than normal after gestation. For example if one twin has a birthmark on the right arm then the other twin would have it on the left. I think that it is really cool that this can happen and that the genetics between the two children are shared and it makes similar features.

            Research shows that taller women are more likely to have twins than shorter women because of the extra weight of two children in the womb and insulin like growth factors that promotes twins production. Also women over 35 are more likely to have twins than younger than 35 due to higher levels of follicle-stimulating hormones.

            Identical twins do not have identical finger prints, which are caused by random stresses experienced in the womb. Also a different umbilical cord can change the finger print and is a way for doctors to tell them apart.

            Multiple studies have shown that location plays a role into how many twins in the area are born. Some areas have higher twin birth rates than others like the city Benin; Africa has 27.9 twins for every 1,000 babies born. Massachusetts, New Jersey and Connecticut have a 25% higher rate of twin births than the rest of the nation. Hawaii and Mexico have a twin birth rate of 30% lower than the national average. In some societies having twins is not at all common and is considered a strange thing.

            Twins do not have to have the same father; it is possible that a woman gives birth to two children at the same time with different fathers. It is called heteropaternal superfecundation when this happens and it is very uncommon, but it is possible according to genetic tests and research.

            There is a gene that is passed through the family that is likely to cause the birth of twins called hyper-ovulation which increases the chances of having twins and makes it possible for twins to run in the family. Scientists have said that it skips a generation but that fact is not proven. Me and my brother are twins, and my cousins are twins (my dads sister), and twins do run in my family because my aunts are triplets.

            Twins are shown to have some sort of bond even in the womb, studies show that the fetuses interact even before they are born and within hours after the birth. That supports the saying that twins have an unbreakable bond and are in a way “connected” to each other. Me and my twin brother are pretty close to each other and we have sort of bond that not all siblings have.

           

            Some places in the world not have a lot of twins and they think it is very strange for that to occur and consider twins to be "evil" and "unnatural". I don't think that is ethical or correct at all because twins are a completely natural occurrence that happens all the time and it is even common to have more than two kids at a time like triplets or more.