New York: The polyphenols in green tea can help prevent prostate cancer, says new research published in the Cancer Research Journal.

Polyphenols target the molecular pathways that shut down the proliferation and spread of tumour cells, as well as inhibiting the growth of tumour nurturing blood vessels, say researchers at the University of Wisconsin.

The researchers found that the consumption of green tea polyphenols led to reduced levels of IGF-1, an inulin-like growth factor found in association with several cancers.

It was also found that the substance led to increased levels of one of the binding proteins for IGF-1, the insulin growth factor binding protein-3.

The research which was carried out with mice discovered that feeding them green tea polyphenols blocked the development and progression of prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer normally occurs in men over 50 years of age, but the chemical process that starts it all begins decades earlier.

Drinking up to 12 cups of green tea per day has no known toxic effects on the human body.