What raises the chances of having twins?
If your mother was a fraternal twin, that would up the chances. But your father could be a triplet or a quadruplet and it wouldn’t have an impact. Basically, there’s a gene for hyperovulation – when women often release more than one egg per cycle, creating the conditions for two eggs to be fertilized and fraternal twins resulting. This is passed through the maternal line. So the daughters of twins have something like a 1 in 17 chance of conceiving twins. Other factors that make a difference: * The older you are – say, over 35 – the more likely you are to conceive twins. Think of it as your ovaries’ last hurrah. * Taller, heavier women appear to have more multiple pregnancies. * Women of West African descent have higher percentages of twins. Some attribute this to a diet high in yams; others argue that that’s coincidence. All of this applies to fraternal twins. Identical twins are a fluke – when one fertilized egg divides. While your odds probably aren’t higher based on your family hist
