Chukwu octuplets
Encyclopedia
The Chukwu octuplets were the first set of octuplets
live-born in the United States
.
in Houston, Texas
. Their parents — mother, Nkem Chukwu, then 27, and father, Iyke Louis Udobi, then 41 — were both Nigeria
n-born American citizens. As both parents were of Igbo
ancestry, the babies were named as follows:
The octuplets were conceived with the aid of fertility medication
. All weighed under two pounds at the time of birth. The first born, Ebuka, was delivered on December 8, 15 weeks premature. The remainder were born by Caesarean section
on December 20, 13 weeks premature. The smallest of the octuplets, Odera, died on December 27, a week after birth.
In 2002, Nkem Chukwu gave birth to a daughter named Divine Favour, without the help of fertility medication. She is called "Favour" as Chukwu believed that God did such by giving her back the daughter she lost after the octuplets' births. Favour is usually seen in public dressed like her siblings forming the 8-member brood.
The children celebrated their 10th birthday in Houston on December 20, 2008, in the company of volunteers who helped in their early years. The five girls and two boys are reported to be "normal, active and bright fourth-graders."
in a pre-recorded segment where they commented on the birth of the new Suleman octuplets
. The next day, January 28, 2009, the whole family along with grandmother Janet Chukwu appeared on NBC's The Today Show which was the first time the octuplets appeared on national television since their first birthdays. Later that day they were whisked to the Associated Press
(AP) World Headquarters for a TV interview for the world newswires. On Monday February 2, they also appeared on the Larry King Live
show in a segment titled "Octuplet Outrage" focusing on the worldwide coverage generated by Nadya Suleman's 14 children, and the ethical and medical controversy. On February 9, 2009, Nkem and Iyke Chukwu appeared on Radio One's talk show The Mo'Nique show. They also appeared Sunday February 15, 2009 on a local TV segment on KHOU-TV, Houston, Texas on a family update. They also appeared on CNN's AC360 on February 18, 2009. Nkem Chukwu addressed the issue of the Nadya Suleman controversy with Randi Kaye of CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 show on February 18, 2009.
On February 2, 2009, Nkem Chukwu's released a statement. The statement read:
When asked, her husband Iyke Louis Udobi stated in their recent AP interview that "if you can take care of one, you can take care of eight".
tour seminars on how to shop groceries for large families. The tour will extend into the United States
, Canada
, United Kingdom
, Australia
, New Zealand
and the parents' native Nigeria
. They are currently seeking sponsors through their marketing team and planning to make the world a healthy place to be. They plan to wrap up the tour with a visit to Buckingham Palace
and The White House sometime in 2009. Nkem Chukwu elaborated on NBC's The Today Show on January 28, 2009 on the need to bring up healthy families even during a recession. Meanwhile Nkem Chukwu continues to educate families with health tips, news of the day, quotes and other multiple family news. On March 18, 2009, in their latest interview with the Daily Sentinel in Nacogdoches, Texas, Octuplet father Iyke Louis and his wife said that they never thought they would have so many children, but that God brought them the gift, and now they are looking to share it with the world. Several projects are in the works for the Chukwus, including a book, magazine deals and even a possible documentary.
Multiple birth
A multiple birth occurs when more than one fetus is carried to term in a single pregnancy. Different names for multiple births are used, depending on the number of offspring. Common multiples are two and three, known as twins and triplets...
live-born in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Family history
The six girls and two boys were born in December 1998 at St. Luke's Episcopal HospitalSt. Luke's Episcopal Hospital
St. Luke's Episcopal Hospital serves as the lead hospital for St. Luke's Episcopal Health System, and is based at the Texas Medical Center in Houston. St. Luke's Episcopal Health System also includes St. Luke's Episcopal Health Charities, St. Luke's The Woodlands Hospital, St. Luke's Sugar Land...
in Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
. Their parents — mother, Nkem Chukwu, then 27, and father, Iyke Louis Udobi, then 41 — were both Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
n-born American citizens. As both parents were of Igbo
Igbo people
Igbo people, also referred to as the Ibo, Ebo, Eboans or Heebo are an ethnic group living chiefly in southeastern Nigeria. They speak Igbo, which includes various Igboid languages and dialects; today, a majority of them speak English alongside Igbo as a result of British colonialism...
ancestry, the babies were named as follows:
- Chukwuebuka Nkemjika (Ebuka) - Girl, weighed 690 g (1lb 6 oz) at birth
- Chidinma Anulika (Chidi) - Girl, weighed 760 g (1lb 8 oz) at birth
- Chigecherem Nwabugwu (Echerem) - Girl, weighed 800 g (1lb 9 oz) at birth
- Chimaijem Otito (Chima) - Girl, weighed 730 g (1lb 7 oz) at birth
- Chijindu Chidera (Odera) - Girl, weighed 320 g (10 oz) at birth
- Chukwubuikem Maduabuchi (Ikem) - Boy, weighed 500 g (1lb 0 oz) at birth
- Chijioke Chinedum (Jioke) - Boy, weighed 810 g (1lb 10 oz) at birth
- Chinagorom Chidiebere (Gorom) - Girl, weighed 520 g (1lb 0 oz) at birth
The octuplets were conceived with the aid of fertility medication
Fertility medication
Fertility medication are drugs which enhance reproductive fertility. For women, fertility medication is used to stimulate follicle development of the ovary...
. All weighed under two pounds at the time of birth. The first born, Ebuka, was delivered on December 8, 15 weeks premature. The remainder were born by Caesarean section
Caesarean section
A Caesarean section, is a surgical procedure in which one or more incisions are made through a mother's abdomen and uterus to deliver one or more babies, or, rarely, to remove a dead fetus...
on December 20, 13 weeks premature. The smallest of the octuplets, Odera, died on December 27, a week after birth.
In 2002, Nkem Chukwu gave birth to a daughter named Divine Favour, without the help of fertility medication. She is called "Favour" as Chukwu believed that God did such by giving her back the daughter she lost after the octuplets' births. Favour is usually seen in public dressed like her siblings forming the 8-member brood.
The children celebrated their 10th birthday in Houston on December 20, 2008, in the company of volunteers who helped in their early years. The five girls and two boys are reported to be "normal, active and bright fourth-graders."
Media appearances
On January 27, 2009, Nkem Chukwu and her husband Iyke Louis Udobi appeared for the first time in 10 years on national TV on ABC's Good Morning AmericaGood Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
in a pre-recorded segment where they commented on the birth of the new Suleman octuplets
Suleman octuplets
The Suleman octuplets are six male and two female children conceived via in vitro fertilization and subsequently born to Nadya Suleman on January 26, 2009, in Bellflower, California. They presently reside in La Habra, California...
. The next day, January 28, 2009, the whole family along with grandmother Janet Chukwu appeared on NBC's The Today Show which was the first time the octuplets appeared on national television since their first birthdays. Later that day they were whisked to the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
(AP) World Headquarters for a TV interview for the world newswires. On Monday February 2, they also appeared on the Larry King Live
Larry King Live
Larry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was CNN's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly....
show in a segment titled "Octuplet Outrage" focusing on the worldwide coverage generated by Nadya Suleman's 14 children, and the ethical and medical controversy. On February 9, 2009, Nkem and Iyke Chukwu appeared on Radio One's talk show The Mo'Nique show. They also appeared Sunday February 15, 2009 on a local TV segment on KHOU-TV, Houston, Texas on a family update. They also appeared on CNN's AC360 on February 18, 2009. Nkem Chukwu addressed the issue of the Nadya Suleman controversy with Randi Kaye of CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 show on February 18, 2009.
On February 2, 2009, Nkem Chukwu's released a statement. The statement read:
- In light of the Bellflower mom, Nadya Suleman's story, I spoke on The Today Show
When asked, her husband Iyke Louis Udobi stated in their recent AP interview that "if you can take care of one, you can take care of eight".
World tour
The Chukwu octuplets will be embarking on a world tour themed "Promoting Healthy Families." The tour begins Summer of 2009 after the octuplet kids take their summer break. They plan to visit TV talk shows and health clinics; their mother Nkem plans to visit prenatal and postnatal clinics as a speaker; the children plan to visit summer camps and hold supermarketSupermarket
A supermarket, a form of grocery store, is a self-service store offering a wide variety of food and household merchandise, organized into departments...
tour seminars on how to shop groceries for large families. The tour will extend into the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and the parents' native Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
. They are currently seeking sponsors through their marketing team and planning to make the world a healthy place to be. They plan to wrap up the tour with a visit to Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace, in London, is the principal residence and office of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality...
and The White House sometime in 2009. Nkem Chukwu elaborated on NBC's The Today Show on January 28, 2009 on the need to bring up healthy families even during a recession. Meanwhile Nkem Chukwu continues to educate families with health tips, news of the day, quotes and other multiple family news. On March 18, 2009, in their latest interview with the Daily Sentinel in Nacogdoches, Texas, Octuplet father Iyke Louis and his wife said that they never thought they would have so many children, but that God brought them the gift, and now they are looking to share it with the world. Several projects are in the works for the Chukwus, including a book, magazine deals and even a possible documentary.