South African woman reportedly gives birth to 10 babies
What's the story
A woman in South Africa has reportedly given birth to 10 babies, all at once - breaking a world record set just last month. Gosiame Thamara Sithole, 37, now has 12 children, as she brings home 10 siblings for her six-year-old twins. Of the newborns, seven are boys and three girls, the local media reported. Here are more details on this.
Details
Sithole recently gave birth at a Pretoria hospital
Sithole gave birth through Caesarean section at a hospital in Pretoria on Monday, June 7. She and her husband, Teboho Tsotetsi, were in for a big surprise as they became parents to 10 children - two more than the doctors had identified in medical scans done earlier. Sithole says her pregnancy was natural and she had not received fertility treatment.
Quote
'I am happy, I am emotional,' said the father
"It's seven boys and three girls. She was seven months and seven days pregnant. I am happy. I am emotional. I can't talk much. Let's talk again in the morning please," Tsotetsi told the Pretoria News.
Interview
'I battled to sleep at night'
In an interview with Pretoria News last month, Sithole said she "took time to believe" that she was going to have multiple babies. "But, as time went by, I realized it was indeed true. I battled to sleep at night though," she reportedly said. "God made a miracle and my children stayed in the womb without any complications," Sithole had said at the time.
World record?
'Looking into it,' says Guinness World Records spokesperson
If and when confirmed, Sithole's delivery would become the first reported birth of "decuplets" - 10 children born together. A spokesperson for the Guinness World Records said they are aware of the news. "At the current time, we are yet to verify this as a record as the well-being of both the mother and babies is of top priority," they told New York Post.
Previous records
Sithole breaks the record of Halima Cisse, mom of 9
Sithole has now broken the record of Halima Cisse - a 25-year-old woman from Mali who had given birth to nine babies this May. She gave birth in Morocco to five girls and four boys. In 2009, a woman in the United States - Nadya Suleman - successfully gave birth to octuplets, with all the eight babies surviving past birth.