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Even when no harm has occurred, some individuals create false news by exploiting sensitive issues to mislead the public. These fabricated stories spread quickly on social media, where they are often accepted and shared as fact, allowing misinformation to reach a wide audience in a short time. This report presents our fact-checking investigation into one such widely circulated post.
Social Media Posts
A social media post claims that a mother at Kandy National Hospital gave birth to eight babies, with seven reportedly in good health and one not surviving. The post includes an image of a mother with seven infants but lacks key details such as the date, identity, and verified medical confirmation. This absence of credible information raises serious doubts about the claim and highlights the importance of verifying such content before sharing.
Believing the Facebook post to be genuine, many users shared it widely across their networks. At the same time, a considerable number of people responded with heartfelt messages, offering their blessings and wishing the mother and her children good health and a bright future. Their comments reflected genuine compassion and goodwill, as many assumed the story to be true.
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However, these so-called “details” fail to provide any meaningful information, such as the exact date of birth or any verified facts about the mother or the children, leaving the claims largely unsubstantiated and vague.
Considering these gaps and requests from readers for verification, we took steps to investigate the matter thoroughly.
Fact Check
If a mother had indeed given birth to eight babies at once, whether at Kandy or any other hospital in the country, such a rare and extraordinary event would have received extensive coverage in all major local media outlets and likely even international media. However, our preliminary investigation confirmed that no media outlet reported such a story. Following this, we directly contacted Kandy National Hospital to verify the claim.
Kandy National Hospital
To verify the claim that a mother gave birth to eight babies at Kandy National Hospital, we contacted the hospital directly. A spokesperson confirmed that the claim is entirely false and that no such birth has occurred. They also noted that there have been no recent exceptional or extraordinary births and urged the public not to share misleading content.
Official Statement from Kandy National Hospital
The hospital’s Director has also addressed the public via the hospital’s official Facebook page, emphasising that the reports of an eight-baby birth at the hospital are false. The statement warns against spreading such misleading information and notes that legal action will be taken against individuals responsible for disseminating such false claims.
Highest Multiple Births Reported in Sri Lanka
The highest number of babies reported in a single multiple birth in Sri Lanka to date is six, which occurred in 2021 at a private hospital in Colombo. Details here, here and here.
Additionally, in June 2013, Kandy National Hospital reported a quintuple birth (five babies), while in 2023, Peradeniya Teaching Hospital recorded a quadruple birth (four babies). Details here, here and here
Octuple Births Worldwide
The birth of eight babies at once is extremely rare globally, with only a handful of such cases recorded in history. In 1998, a mother in Texas, USA, gave birth to eight babies, of which one sadly passed away a week later. Later, in 2009, another octuple birth was reported in the United States. All eight babies survived, a remarkable outcome. Details here and here
According to specialists, such multiple births most often occur through assisted reproductive technologies, such as IVF. Even so, octuplets remain extremely rare worldwide, and no such birth has ever been reported in Sri Lanka.
Is the photo of the six babies born at The Castle Hospital?
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Conclusion
Our investigation confirms that the social media posts claiming that a mother at Kandy National Hospital gave birth to eight babies are entirely false. The hospital has verified that no such birth, or any other extraordinary multiple birth, has occurred in recent days. These posts can therefore be identified as deliberately created and circulated to mislead the public, rather than as factual reports.
Title: Did a mother give birth to eight babies at the Kandy National Hospital?
Fact Check By: Sagarika Chathumali
Result: False
