Tea and Cancer Prevention Tea drinking is an ancient tradition dating back 5,000 years in China and India. daylong regarded in those cultures as an aid to good health, researchers now are studying tea for possible use in the prevention and treatment of a variety of cancers. Investigators are especially interested in the antioxidants-called catechins-found in tea. 1. What are antioxidants? The hominian body constantly produces unstable molecules titled oxidants, also commonly referred to as free radicals. To become stable, oxidants steal electrons from other molecules and, in the process, damage cell proteins and genetic material. This damage may leave the cell vulnerable to cancer. Antioxidants are substances that allow the human body to scavenge and seize oxidants. Like opposite antioxidants, the catechins found in tea selectively inhibit special enzyme activities that lead to cancer. They may also target and repair DNA aberrations caused by oxidants (1).