Over
the years, science has evolved phenomenally and we have had
explanations to things that were once bizarre to us including having two
babies from different fathers in one womb at once.
File photo
Siblings can have different fathers; can twins born of a woman have
two fathers? The straight answer is yes. Twins could be “bipaternal.”
This phenomenon occurs quite rarely (1 in a billion to be exact), but
several pairs of non-identical twins have been born, tested and found
to be the products of one womb, one pregnancy, but two fathers.
It is often assumed that for twins, both eggs were fertilized
during a single act of intercourse. However it is quite possible for one
egg to be fertilized during one act of intercourse, and the other
during another if the woman has intercourse with two men within hours.
Normally, women ovulate only one healthy egg per cycle. Fraternal
twins are born when women ovulate two healthy eggs and both get
fertilised. But it is also possible for two eggs to be ovulated during
the same cycle and fertilised at different points within the five-day
fertility window resulting in twins. This process is known as
“superfecundation”.
What this means is that each egg can be fertilised by different
sperms. If a woman ovulates two or more eggs and she has sex with more
than one man while she’s fertile, “heteropaternal superfecundation”
can occur, if the eggs get fertilised by sperm from the two different
fathers within the same ovulation period. Medical research shows that
when a woman has s*x with two men within the same ovulation window, it
can result in bi-paternal twins, that come when a woman releases two
eggs during ovulation instead of one — and both eggs are then
fertilized. With bi-paternal twins, each egg is fertilized by a
different man’s sperm.
A woman’s eggs can live up to 24 hours in her reproductive system.
Sperm, on the other hand, can live up to five days in the woman’s
body. So it is possible that a fertile woman could have s*x with one
man and have sex with a different man another time within the 24 hour
period — and then when her eggs are released, the two men’s sperm
living inside her could each fertilize an egg.
Marcus and Lucas are twins with two different fathers. They are
one of only three known sets of twins in the world who are genetic
half-brothers. Their mother Charlotte became pregnant when she slept
with ex-husband Michael and new boyfriend Tommy within 48 hours. Nine
months later she gave birth to twins Marcus and Lucas, who are genetic
half-brothers because they were fathered by both men.
Marcus was fathered by Michael and Lucas by Tommy. Charlotte, who
already had two sons by Michael Nielsen, divorced him in August 2004.
She began dating Tommy even as Michael still hoped to get back
together with her and in the heat of the moment they ended up in bed
together. Charlotte kept quiet about the incident with Michael which was
a one-off and went to bed with Tommy.
She later discovered she was pregnant with twins and decided to
inform both men either could be father of the twins. Marcus and Lucas
were just a couple of weeks old when it was discovered they didn’t
look alike. Tommy and Michael took a DNA test to find out for certain
that the boys had different fathers. The test proved the twins did
indeed have different fathers. It stated: “The results do not imply
that the children Lucas Hilbrandt Nielsen and Marcus Hilbrandt Nielsen
have the same biological father. The probability of this preclusion
exceeds 99.99 per cent.”
Similar cases of bi-paternal twins have popped up over time. In May
2015, a case in New Jersey made news when a court ruled that a father
did not have to pay child support for a second twin because DNA
evidence showed that he was a father to only one. The mother gave
birth to twin girls and named a romantic partner, as the father of both
children when applying for public assistance. But after she admitted
that she had sex with another unidentified man within a week of having
had sex with the bonafide partner, a DNA test was ordered.
The test results confirmed both men fathered each of the girls. CNN
also reported fraternal twins in Vietnam found to have different
fathers in an “extremely rare” case that came to light through a DNA
test. They had their DNA tested at the Centre for Genetic Analysis and
Technology in Hanoi because family members had been vocal about
notable differences in the children’s appearance. There are rare
cases in which a woman may ovulate more than once during her cycle,
meaning that two eggs would be released at different times.
There are less than 10 known cases of twins with different fathers
in the world. Fraternal twins make up about 2 percent of pregnancies
and bi-paternal twins are a fraction of them. But twins, who don’t look
alike, do not necessarily have separate fathers. Twins who have the
same father can look completely different and may even appear to be of
different races. Less than one (0.001) per cent of fraternal twins are
from different fathers.
According to Dr. Virginia Beckett of the Royal College of
Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, if a woman is going to sleep with more
than one partner at the same time it is perfectly feasible that if she
has twins they could have different fathers.
“In this case these twins were conceived at the same time even
though the mother did not have sex with the fathers at the same time.
The sperm from the first man would have been in her fallopian tube,
where it is effective for three to four days. Then she had sex with the
second man and released two eggs.
The eggs, which live for 24 hours, were fertilised by different
sperm from the different men. The science is easily explained, but it
may have been less easy for the mother to explain.
- Via Vanguard
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