Women trying to conceive could see their chances of getting pregnant more than double if they regularly take vitamin supplements.

A study at University College London showed greater conception success for women on a Vitabiotics Pregnacare supplement than women taking folic acid alone.

The small study, which was published in the journal Reproductive BioMedicine, was conducted on just 58 women who were having difficulty conceiving and undergoing IVF treatment. The group were divided into two, with one group taking the Pregnacare supplement and the other taking folic acid.

60% of those on the vitamin pill, which includes vitamins C, D and E as well as zinc, selenium and folic acid, became pregnant, while only 25% of the other group taking just folic acid were successful.

Pregnacare also proved to speed up getting pregnant, with 75% of those who conceived falling pregnant in the first round of IVF. This compares with only 18% of those who were just taking folic acid conceiving in the first course.

Dr Rina Agrawal who led the study said she would recommend a vitamin supplement to all women trying to conceive. Further research and a larger trial will be conducted to confirm the findings of this study.