Proanthocyanidins

Lychees contain powerful antioxidant properties, according to researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Guangzhou, China who published a study in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry in 2010. They reported that some proanthocyanidins in lychee fruit appear to have more antioxidant potency than Lascorbic acid, or vitamin C. They also found that litchitannin A2, a compound in lychees, exhibited antiviral activity against viral infections such as coxsackie virus and herpes simplex virus.