Fraternal twins

Fraternal twins result from a pregnancy in which two eggs are fertilised during conception. Two eggs means that each baby will have its own placenta and its own amniotic sac. This lowers the risks of the possible complications associated with fetuses who share these two important lifelines during pregnancy.

Fraternal twins are the most common multiple birth and are influenced by race, heredity, any previous pregnancies, fertility medications and the mother’s age. So if there is a history of fraternal twins in your family, it is quite possible that you could deliver fraternal twins as well! However, contrary to popular belief fraternal twins do not ALWAYS skip generations, though there are incidences of this pattern.

Mothers of both fraternal and identical twins are known to have slighty shorter pregnancies than mothers pregnant with just one baby, which means their babies generally have lower birthweights, but once they start breastfeeding they’ll soon start packing on those pounds. Twins are commonly born between week 36 and week 37, so you mums pregnant with twins need to get the nursery ready about one month earlier.