Many women drink coffee and soda when trying to conceive without realizing that they could be reducing their chances of conceiving; here are the results of a studies on coffee consumption and pregnancy that may make you think twice before having a caffeine fix while trying to conceive.

One study - published in The American journal of Epidemiology - observed the effects of caffeine on 1,909 Connecticut women in the early eighties. Women were interviewed at their first pre-natal visit and asked about their caffeine consumption and the time that it took for them to conceive. The authors noted that:

"Intake of caffeine from coffee, tea, and caffeinated soft drinks was associated with an increased risk of a delay of conception of 1 year or more."

Compared to women who did not consume caffeine, drinking over 300 mg of caffeine a day was associated with a 27% lower chance of conceiving each cycle; drinking less than 300 mg a day reduced the chances of conceiving by 10% in each conception cycle. The study concluded that:

"This study adds to the evidence that caffeine intake, or some other component of caffeine-containing beverages, may be related to a reduction in fertility among females."

One of the mechanisms that some may responsible for caffeine’s anti-fertility effect is the ability of caffeine to reduce blood flow to internal organs. Some top fertility clinics perform a color doppler study of ovarian and uterine blood flow before pregnancy and fertility treatments to ensure that blood flow dynamics are good prior to fertility treatment. Patients are warned to avoid all caffeine before this test as it can compromise blood flow to the uterus significantly affecting the test results.

You may get pregnant faster if you give up your caffeine fix. Given that women can take considerable time to clear caffeine from their blood stream, even a small amount of caffeine may compromise the flow of blood to you uterus negatively promoting infertility and is best avoided while you are trying to conceive.

This article is purely for educational and informational purposes and is not intended to substitute for medical diagnosis or treatment for which you should consult a physician.

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Reference:
Association of Delayed Conception With Caffeine Consumption, Elizabeth Hatch and Michael Bracken, Am. J. Epidemiol. (1993) 138 (12): 1082-1092.