Event

TwinFest!

The University of Washington (UW) Twin Registry is planning its first annual TwinFest on June 7 at the UW HUB in Seattle. Twin gatherings have been very successful for other twin registries around the world. The purpose of this event is to raise awareness of the UW Twin Registry and the value of twin research, and to have a lot of fun! Attendees will be able to meet the staff of the UW Twin Registry, and meet each other. Twins will be invited to dress alike and compete in contests such as" Most Identical-Looking Twins" and "Least Similar-Looking Twins."

The UW Twin Registry is one of the largest twin registries in the United States with over 8,500 twin pairs currently enrolled and about 100 new pairs joining each month. Established in 1999, it is a world-class resource for medical and behavioral research.

Not so long ago, many people believed that autism was caused by bad parenting, that social factors caused schizophrenia, and that obesity was due to a lack of will power. By studying twins, we now know that all three conditions are strongly influenced by genes. These examples show the value of twin studies in medical and behavioral health research. In fact, twin studies have provided important insights into conditions as diverse as multiple sclerosis, cardiovascular disease, and type II diabetes. And twin studies hold great promise to produce significant discoveries in medicine and behavioral science in the future.

For information about this event, visit our website at www.uwtwinregistry.org.