Having a baby is the dream of infertile couples. Many of these couples spend many years and countless dollars trying to conceive. In some cases, an infertility specialist might recommend the use of fertility pills. Included in the list of possible side effects of fertility pills is an increased chance of multiple births, generally twins.
Conceiving Fraternal Twins
Fraternal twins are technically called dizygotic twins, but are also known as non-identical twins or biovular twins. Fraternal twins occur when the mother ovulates two eggs that are then fertilized by two separate sperm cells. Fraternal twins share no more DNA than other singleton siblings and can be either same sex twins or boy/girl twins. Conceiving fraternal twins can be passed as a hereditary trait and according to Multiple Treasures, they occur in 75 percent of twin births.
Conceiving Identical Twins
Identical twins are technically called monozygotic twins. Identicals occur when a woman ovulates a single egg, that is fertilized by a single egg, and then the egg divides. Identical twins are always the same sex and their DNA is nearly identical. Conceiving identical twins is not a hereditary trait.
Fertility Pills
When people speak of fertilty pills they are referring to Clomiphene Citrate, known as Clomid or Serophene. Doctors prescribe Clomid to women who are having ovulation problems. They might also prescribe it to women whose husbands have a lower sperm count, with the idea of increasing the couple’s overall fertility.
Using Clomid
Doctors will generally begin the prescription of Clomid at 50 mg. If there does not appear to be the desired results, the dosage might be increased to 100 mg. A woman takes Clomid for four days, beginning either on the third or fifth day of her cycle, according to her doctor’s preference. Once the proper dosage has been determined, ovulation should occur between five to eight days after the last pill is taken. Couples should have sexual intercourse on the third day after the woman takes the last pill and continue having intercourse on alternating days for one week.
Increased Chance of Twins
Even though Clomid is considered a low-level fertility drug, it does increase the chances of twins. According to Med TV, in clinical studies of women using Clomid, 30 percent became pregnant; of those women, nearly 8 percent conceived multiples, with 6.9 percent being twin pregnancies.
