Identical twins will appear on The Tyra Banks Show
Sierra and Sariya Winters receive request after their photo published in magazineBy J.D. CREER, Managing editor
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Fact Box
What are identical twins?
- A general stereotype about identical twins is that they are clones. They act alike, look alike, and are expected to be "identical." However, the term identical twins actually refers to a type of twinning, and describes how they form, not what they look like.
- The correct term for identical twinning is monozygotic. Monozygotic twins form from a single (mono) fertilized egg (zygote). The zygote splits into two parts after conception, resulting in the development of two individual embryos. Because the two embryos are the result of a single egg/sperm combination, they have the same genetic origins. They have the same DNA.
- Dizygotic twins (often referred to as fraternal), are the result of two eggs fertilized by two separate sperm. Although most women only release a single egg in an ovulation cycle, sometimes multiples eggs are released. Dizygotic twins share about 50% of their genetic traits, the same as any other siblings born at different times.
- The causes of monozygotic twinning are generally unknown and unidentified. No one really knows why an egg splits; technically it's a malfunction of the normal development process.
- There's no hereditary trait that influences a predisposition to having identical twins. Identical twins do not run in families. Although there are families with a high incidence of identical twins, it is due to chance, coincidence or plain good luck.
- Identical twins represent about a third of all twins. Dizygotic twins are twice as common as monozygotic.
- Birth rate statistics for identical twinning have remained stable over the years, despite the overall increase in twins and multiples since the late 1980's. The odds of having identical twins is about 3 in 1,000, whereas the birthrate for all twins is about 32.2 in 1,000.
- Identical twinning is not generally influenced by fertility-enhancing treatments like drugs or in vitro, although monozygotic twins have been produced in pregnancies that were the result of such treatments.
- Birth rates for identical twins are consistent across populations; it is the same regardless of race, geography or maternal age.
Source:?about.com
Fans of The Tyra Banks Show might try adjusting their TV sets or complain of double vision during an upcoming episode.
Memo to such fans: don't bother.
Distinct identical twins will be featured in a show scheduled for later this month. Included will be 19-year-old splitting images of each other sisters will local ties.
Sierra and Sariya Winters were born and raised in East Liverpool. Sierra, who lives in Salem, is a student of the Kent State Salem and East Liverpool campuses. She is employed at the Calcutta Walmart. Sariya is a resident of West Salem. She attends Ohio University in Athens. She graduated from Northwestern High School and her sister from East Liverpool. Both are 2008 graduates.
Circumstances leading to their TV appearance became, well, entwined, last August in - where else? -Twinsburg. Sierra and Sariya were making their annual appearance at the popular festival held in that Ohio city which is located about 60 miles northwest of Salem. The popular festival attracts twins from across the country. This summer will mark the Winters' 20th festival visit. They have won awards at the festival.
"Actually we were just walking around (at the festival) and then sat down because our feet were hurting from being in high heels," Sariya said. "Someone saw us and came up and asked if were interested in a photo shoot."
They were. They had that look a high-profile magazine wanted. The result was a photo published in the November issue of Marie Claire magazine (the one with Hillary Swank on the cover). It can be viewed online at www.marieclaire.com. Marie Claire is a monthly women's magazine with worldwide distribution.
The theme for Marie Claire is "More than a Pretty Face." The magazine gives readers information about different women around the world and their needs, struggles, and stories of life.
The photo of the strawberry blonde twins with greenish blue eyes caught the attention of Tyra Banks and her staff, including, naturally, a producer who is a twin herself. The show contacted the pair about appearing in a twins-oriented segment. They readily agreed and were flown to New York City, appearing on a show taped Jan. 12. The segment included four sets of twins. The specific date of its airing has not been released. The show picked up the two-day tab for air fare and related expenses. The twins did receive appearance gifts.
Sariya said the experience would be hard to duplicate.
"We were floored to have been asked," she said. "We weren't nervous at all. They had talked to us on the phone, prepped us and from that kind of built a script. They told us to speak from the heart and tell our story. We were the first ones on the segment. It felt natural; maybe it was the adrenalin and excitement kicking in."
The show's host made an impression. "Tyra is really nice and I wish we were able to talk to her more," Sariya said. "The only time we could was when we were on the set."
"It was a lot of fun," echoed Sierra. "I had kind of heard word of mouth of what she (Tyra Banks) was like. She was really down to earth. She pretty much asked questions that she wanted and we were on our way. She really didn't get to know us and we really didn't get to know her. But everything about it was wonderful.
"There's something about flying into New York City. I never thought we'd be able to ever go there. It was kind of surreal. We really felt grateful to get the opportunity to do that. It was a bonding experience. It was just was awesome. It felt like it was meant to be. Things happen for a reason; it always leads to something."
"It was just amazing," said Danyele Chetwynd, mother of the twins who attended the taping. "I was just shocked when they were asked to appear. It was the most exciting thing that could ever happen to the girls, to me. I sat in the front row. It was a cool experience."
Mom said she wasn't aware of a history of twins in the family. "I have heard that when you are really young or when you are older, the chances increase. I was 19 when I had the girls." The twins have one sibling, a sister. Sariya stays with her mother when not in school. Sierra lives in Salem with her grandfather, David Chetwynd. Their father is David Winters of East Liverpool.
Sariya and Sierra were spared here the obvious questions regarding, oh perhaps if "Twins" was a favorite movie. Or if the Olsens were their favorite actors or maybe the Minnesota Twins were a favorite baseball team. And, of course, do they chew Doublemint gum? But they did offer some interesting insights.
For instance, in the eighth grade, they once pranked teachers with a switcheroo. "We switched classes," chuckled Sariya. "A lot of times teachers couldn't tell us apart."
To avoid confusion when the girls were born, Danyele left wrist bands on them. Different nail polish was another way of telling them apart. There are stories of teachers not being able to tell them apart. At the beginning of the year, mom would help by dressing them in two different colors.
"I still have a hard time telling them apart from behind," she said. "When they dress identically with their hair the same way, most would have a hard time telling them apart."
Having a living and breathing mirror image doesn't bother either. Not a twinge of regret. "We embrace everything given to us," Sierra said. "We feel being a twin a special gift and embrace as a gift what was given to us."
Sariya agreed. "Sometimes people get confused but it's not confusing to our friends at all. People who don't know us can't tell us apart. We kind of like it like that. It was always kind of competitive to us to look more alike than most twins."
It's worked. Choose your cliche - dead ringers for each other; two peas in a pod. They are uncannily identical. It's not just physical either. Sometimes the bubbly pair even finishes each other sentences. And when they switched majors in colleges, they did so without the other knowing. Of course, they each selected the exact same major and, natch, minor too - secondary education and psychology.
When their parents split up it produced a separation for the sisters. College has had an impact too. "We want to live or lives together ultimately," Sariya said. "We are even identical subconsciously; that's how identical we are. We are two separate persons but we aren't. It's really hard now just talking on the phone and seeing each other just once a month after being with someone almost every single day. We always planned to go to college together. Part of me almost feels like that other half is gone. We've always kind of vibed off each other."
"We are one person with two separate bodies," said Sierra, who was born just a smidge ahead of her sister. "In order to fully understand it, that's how I always put it. People are always intrigued by twins."
