Bruce Feiler - Where God Was Born, Abraham, Walking The Bible

Twin-splosion
Friday, March 2, 2007

When we first learned we would be having twins, we went scampering to the bookstore to buy up the half a shelf of books on the topic. That first night I read with increasing horror about the higher rate of complications during pregnancy, the higher rate of birth defects, the high rate of twins who begin to cannibalize one another in the womb. The worst of the books -- and I can't remember the name -- was so bad that I hid it in my office so my wife wouldn't take it with her the next day on a flight to South Africa. I knew she would go crazy with anxiety.

But one set of figures has stayed with me: Throughout history, one percent of humans have been twins: Two-thirds fraternal; one-third identical. In recent years the percentage has soared, perhaps as high as three percent, I've heard (though I've never done the research). The reasons: 1) Fertility treatment tends to send out more eggs, 2) In IVF, more than one egg is fertilized, and 3) Older women send out more eggs in general. This has increased the percentage of fraternals, of course, which involve more than one egg, and not identicals, in which one egg splits.

Twins are particularly prevalent in Hollywood, it seems, no doubt because the increase wealth produces a large number of women over 40 who can afford expensive treatments to produce children later in life. Last week, we had the extraordinary story of Marcia Cross, who named her twins nearly identical names to ours. And this week, USA Today runs a roundup of all the double births:

•Sean "Diddy" Combs, 37, and Kim Porter, 36
Relationship: The rapper, hip-hop mogul and fashion designer has been dating the former model and actress since 1994. (They broke up in 1999 and reconciled in 2003.)
New arrivals: Daughters D'Lila Star and Jessie James were born Dec. 21.
Other kids: The couple have a son, Christian, 8. Combs has a son, Justin, 13, with stylist Misa Hylton-Brim, and Porter has a son, Quincy, 15, with singer Al B. Sure.

•Marcia Cross, 44, and Tom Mahoney, 49
Relationship: The Desperate Housewives actress married the stockbroker in June.
New arrivals: Daughters Eden and Savannah were born Feb. 20.
Other kids: These are their first children.

•Angela Bassett, 48, and Courtney B. Vance, 46
Relationship: The How Stella Got Her Groove Back actress and the former Law & Order: Criminal Intent assistant district attorney married in 1997.
New arrivals: Surrogate son Slater Josiah and daughter Bronwyn Golden were born Jan. 27, 2006.
Other kids: These are their first children.

•Patrick Dempsey, 41, and Jillian Fink, 40
Relationship: Grey's Anatomy's Dr. McDreamy married the stylist in 1999.
New arrivals: Sons Darby Galen and Sullivan Patrick were born Feb. 1.
Other kids: They have a daughter, Tallulah, 5.

•Melissa Etheridge, 45, and Tammy Lynn Michaels, 32
Relationship: The singer, who took home an Oscar Sunday for her song from An Inconvenient Truth, exchanged vows with the actress in 2003.
New arrivals: Son Miller Steven and daughter Johnnie Rose were born Oct. 17.
Other kids: Etheridge has daughter Bailey Jean, 10, and son Beckett, 8,with former partner Julie Cypher.

•Diana Krall, 42, and Elvis Costello, 52
Relationship: The singers have been married since 2003.
New arrivals: Sons Dexter Henry Lorcan and Frank Harlan James were born Dec. 6.
Other kids: Costello has a son Matthew, 32, with previous wife Mary Burgoyne.

Photo taken outside my home, February 2007

Labels: Twins

Posted by B Feiler at 7:00 AM
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1 Comments:

Yzerfontein said...: There's enough things to worry about on a flight to South Africa that you don't want to add to the Mrs' anxieties! (I'm from SA). Congratz on the twins, we've got a little one due to pop out any day now.; March 2, 2007 10:05:00 AM EST