There are some families out there who would love for their household to grow by four feet all at once. Twins can be twice the work for some parents, but twice as rewarding. For some, the the act of conceiving twins can have much to do with having genetics and for others, having twins can be a complete fluke. Here are six ways that you can increase your odds of conceiving twins on your own:
1) Wait
Women who become pregnant at a later age have a higher incidence of conceiving twins. According to the CDC, your chances of becoming pregnant with multiples increases with age starting from 30 years old and is at its highest over the age of 40. In fact, over the last three decades, it has been recorded in the United States that the number of twins born to women over 40 has risen 200 percent. In 2009, twins births were recorded at a whopping 7 percent for women over the age of 40 and as low as 2 percent for women aged 25 and younger. There is a definite correlation between maternal age and her odds of conceiving twins.
2) The Other Weight
Though not fully understood why, researchers have noted a trend in increased multiple births for women with a BMI over 30. However, I would not encourage anyone to gain weight solely to conceive twins because obesity is also likely to cause difficulty conceiving and even infertlity.
3) Fertility treatments
Whether through in vitro fertilization (IVF) or taking drugs to stimulate ovulation, your chances of becoming pregnant with twins rises drastically when you undergo fertility treatments. The reason IVF increases your odds of having twins is because, unlike a normal ovulation cycle where 99 percent of the time a woman releases only one egg, multiple eggs are used at once. It is estimated that 5-35 percent of successful IVF pregnancies results in twins or more. Clomid, a popular prescription pill given to women experiencing difficulty conceiving, can also cause a woman to hyperovulate (release more than one egg) because of the extra estrogen triggered in her body.
4) Breastfeed
A woman who is breastfeeding is much more likely to become pregnant with twins. The reason for this is because of the relationship between calcium depletion of the lactating mother effects the eggs she produces.
5) Drink Milk
A study in 2006 comparing omnivores, vegetarians, and vegans concluded vegans were much less likely than the others to conceive twins. Why? The researcher behind the study theorizes that a hormone given to cows to increase milk and beef production also increases the likelihood of hyperovulation and thus conceiving twins.
6) Cassava
The Yoruba tribe of Nigera has been become famous as the world’s region with the highest twinning rate, almost four times higher than anywhere else in the world, and it has been rightfully dubbed as “The Land of Twins.” Researches theorize that the high incidence of twin pregnancies is due to the staple food of the tribe’s diet known as cassava root. Though there is no reliable scientific evidence to back the link between cassava and twin pregnancies, researches continue to investigate the connection to explain the abnormally high incidence of twins among the Yoruba tribe and the cassava root continues to remain the number one theory.
Though some of these tips are backed with science and others are only theories, they are worth a shot if you have your heart set on conceiving twins.
