‘Tembisa 10’ for real? Let’s have a look at confirmed record births rather

The story of the woman from the township of Tembisa in Gauteng who allegedly gave birth to 10 babies has made headlines both locally and internationally, as this would be the world’s first-ever decuplets. 

However, there have been many twists and turns over the last eight days as no hospital has been able to confirm the birth of the 10 babies. 

The highest recorded number of babies delivered in a single birth to survive is eight. However, we’re waiting to hear about the Tembisa 10, of course….

Here is a quick history of the world’s record-breaking births, according to Guinness World Records. 

MOST CHILDREN DELIVERED AT A SINGLE BIRTH

Nadya Suleman gave birth to six boys and two girls in California, United States of America (USA) in 2009. The babies were conceived through In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) and were nine weeks premature when delivered by caesarean section. 

Suleman already had six children before her octuplets who were also conceived by IVF. 

MOST NUMBER OF CHILDREN BORN TO ONE MOTHER

The name of the mother is unknown but she was the first wife of Feodov Vassilyev, a pesant from Shuya, Russia. The pair had 69 children together, 16 sets of twins, seven sets of triplets and four sets of quadruplets. 

The case was reported to Moscow by the Monastery who recorded every birth on 27 February 1782. The father of 69, married again and fathered a further 18 children totalling to 87. 

HEAVIEST BIRTH AND LONGEST BABY

Giantess Anna Bates gave birth to a 9.98kg and 71.12cm baby in 1846. Bates and her husband were both tall, she was 7ft 11 and her husband was reportedly the same height. The baby was born in Ohio, US, and sadly passed on 11 hours later. 

THE FIRST ‘TEST TUBE’ BABY

“Test tube” refers to the process of medical intervention such as IVF, where the egg is fertilised outside the body and then implanted into the uterus. The first baby born through IVF was Louise Brown to Lesley Brown on 10 November 1977 in the United Kingdom (UK). 

OLDEST PERSON TO GIVE BIRTH 

In 2006, 66-year-old Maria del Carmen Brousada from Spain gave birth to twin boys by a Caesarean section. Maria received IVF treatment in the US by saying that she was 55 after being rejected for treatment in Spain. 

LONGEST INTERVAL BETWEEN BIRTH OF TRIPLETS

The interval was a total of five days 12 hours and 34 minutes. The three babies were Cian, Declan and Rowan born in the USA. The triplets are born in different decades as Cian was born at 10:40 on 28 December 2019. Declan and Rowan were then born five days later, at 23:11 and 23:14 respectively, on 2 January 2020.