Twinning: Do Twins Really Skip a Generation?

Two babies, two bottles, two college tuitions to worry about, being a twin is not only a blessing but also an interesting occurrence because it is always curious as to who in the family will be the one to have the next set of twins. I as a twin, have always believed having twins skip a generation because my mother’s father was a twin, and I have twin cousins born to my uncle, my mom’s brother, so my family was lucky to have two sets of twins in the same generation. Knowing first hand how difficult it can be to have twins I always sighed in relief knowing I wouldn’t ever have multiples, but once I started to research this topic I soon found out that my premature relief was exactly true.

Yes, it can be hereditary to have fraternal twins, because “Fraternal twinning is caused by a gene on the X chromosome. This gene may cause hyper-ovulation — when a woman’s ovaries release more than one egg per ovulation cycle. A woman can inherit the hyper-ovulation gene from either of her parents” according to Go Ask Alice of Columbia Health. So it is possible to pass the “twin gene” along, which is why the birth of multiples is common in a family, although this explanation doesn’t explain the birth of identical twins. Identical twins are conceived due to the fact that they are born of the same fertilized egg that divides into two and share a single placenta, but there is “no known gene that influences this process, it is considered a mere coincidence when one extended family has multiple sets of identical twins” says the Anahad O’Conner of the New York Times. The occurrence of identical multiples are of mere chance, and unfortunately have no way of being perviously detected until the mother is given an ultrasound.

The idea that twins skip a generation can be due to the fact that the women who conceives the twins inherited the gene to over-ovulate from her father, and since men biologically cannot have kids it appears as if the “twin gene” has skips one generation for the next, but it is possible for the birth of twins to happen in two consecutive generations all depending on the inheritance of the special over-ovulation gene. So the verdict? Fraternal twins can run in families where identical twins are likely a coincidence, and the idea that twins can skip a generation is simply just a myth.

Sources:

http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Twins_identical_and_fraternal?open

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/02/health/02real.html

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/do-genes-influence-whethe/

http://genetics.thetech.org/ask/ask86

http://www.babycenter.com/0_when-and-how-to-find-out-if-youre-carrying-twins-or-more_3579.bc 

 

 

3 thoughts on “Twinning: Do Twins Really Skip a Generation?

  1. Caitlin Marie Gailey

    I also was under the impression that having twins skipped a generation. Since my mom is a twin I was always under the impression that I or my sister would be next. However I found it most interesting that the gene comes from the father and not the mother. I always thought that it was the female lineage that caused the twins to continue. In the case of my family the twin skipping a generation is true but I guess that was just by chance. In an article I read it also said that the number of twins being born has increased, which wasn’t surprising to me as I graduated with 10 pairs of twins in a relatively small class. Another interesting fact I found is that older women are more likely to have twins when two eggs drop at one time. So I guess if you want to avoid having twins air on the side of caution and have kids earlier.
    Here is a link to the article where I read most of this stuff: http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/pages/what-causes-twins.aspx#close

  2. Kelsey Huber

    I’ve always heard that twins skipped a generation and was led to believe this was true. My best friend’s dad is a twin and she is not, so she always brags to us about how she’ll have twins. I think it’s more of a myth and due to chance more than anything else. I think more people believe it because that is simply what they are told (like me, prime example). New York Times lays down the law about twins in this article http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/02/health/02real.html?_r=0.

  3. Lauren Marie Freid

    The topic of twins always interests me. I am a fraternal twin and she actually goes to Penn State too! I do think that twins usually skipped generations, but I have personal experience that it is not always the case. My mom was supposed to be a twin, but her twin died before she was even actually born. So, my mom was a twin and so am I, meaning it did not skip a generation there. However, I have friends that are twins and usually there are other twins in the family as well. I do think it could be more of a myth because there is not enough specific evidence to make a theory that twins always skip generations. http://multiples.about.com/od/funfacts/a/Do-Twins-Skip-A-Generation.htm talks about twins skipping a generation probably being more of a myth rather than a fact.

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