Jun 07 2015 – There is a new ‘trend’ of women giving birth to twins, but shockingly they have different fathers. Impossible, I thought, when I first saw this headline, but I kid you not. Apparently, it’s medically possible for a set of twins to have two different fathers.
Bizarre though it may seem, this has become a little more topical as women have one night stands, are in between relationships and having unprotected sex – resulting in being impregnated by ‘John’ but also ‘Jamie’.
Nasty and careless: are the words that may spring to mind, however, unless we are privy to the reasons a woman chooses to have such relationships, it is not for us to judge.
This situation, although somewhat uncommon can occur when a woman has sexual intercourse with two men during the same menstrual cycle. The two eggs are then fertilised separately by each man. I have seen stories in the media recently where the twins are different beyond recognition! One was black and the other white with ginger hair.
It seems medically impossible, right? No, it’s known as hetero-paternal superfecundation, the rare incident occurs when a woman releases two eggs during her menstrual cycle and different men fertilise each egg.
Shockingly, it is also possible for a woman to give birth to twins who have been conceived weeks or even months apart. This can happen if she continues to ovulate even after she has become pregnant, in a process called superfetation.
It is claimed that superfetation is common in some species of animals, but is extremely rare in humans.
As a matter of fact, a woman can conceive an additional child while already pregnant, two and a half weeks earlier. This is mind blowing to say the least… so men be sure the twin belongs to you before adding your name on that birth certificate!
As we contemplate and digest this information I want to throw this question out to the men in particular:
What would you do if this were to happen in your relationship?
Would you stay or would you go?
As we engage in sexual relationships let us be protective in our action and avoid the complications that can result in such situations. Indeed it must be difficult for any man to come to terms with such a shock. The impact on the children as they grow into adults also must be taken into careful consideration.
Stay and play safe you all.
Ava Brown is an Author, Speaker, Coach, Mother and Trainer. Send your questions to [email protected] with Ava’s Courtyard in the subject line.
