Drinking large amounts of coffee may hurt a woman's chances of becoming pregnant through in vitro fertilization (IVF), a new study from Denmark suggests.

In the study, woman who drank more than five cups of coffee per day were 50 percent less likely to become pregnant through IVF compared with women who did not drink coffee, the researchers said.

Drinking between one and five cups of coffee a day did not affect women's chance of pregnancy with IVF.

The findings suggest that consuming of large amounts of coffee is comparable to smoking in terms of the detriment to IVF success, the researchers said.

However, the study only found an association, and not a cause-effect link. And because there has been limited research on the effects of coffee on IVF, more work is needed to confirm the results.

In general, drinking coffee in moderation while trying to become pregnant in fine, said Dr.