Abstract: To study the nutritional value and antioxidant activities of Cistanche deserticola Y. C. Ma extract. The water extraction method was used in this experiment to research the effects of different extraction conditions on the dry extract rate of Cistanche deserticola Y. C. Ma. Then the response surface analysis method was further used to optimize the process. Moreover, the nutritional components and functional components of the extract were determined, and the antioxidant function and effects on the life span and fecundity of C. elegans were discussed. The results showed that when the material liquid ratio was 1:12 g/mL, the decocting time was 140 min, and the decocting times were 4 times, the dry extract yield of the aqueous extract of Cistanche (AEC) was 65.83%±0.87%. In addition, the nutritional composition and functional components of AEC was detected and found to contain a large amount of nutritional components such as protein (5.22±0.44 g/100 g), fat (0.150±0.06 g/100 g), amino acids (0.640±0.05 g/100 g), etc, and echinacoside (557±4.24 mg/100 g), acteoside (169±7.07 mg/100 g), total sugar (22.1±0.64 g/100 g), total flavonoids (4.13±0.08 g/100 g) and others. Furthermore, the AEC also showed good DPPH scavenging activity, hydroxyl radical scavenging activity, total antioxidant activity, and reducing activity, all of which were concentration dependent. Finally, AEC could prolong the life span of Caenorhabditis elegans. Among them, 8 mg/mL AEC had the best effect, and its average life span reached 10.95±2.40 d. Therefore, AEC has good antioxidant capacity, and rich in various nutrients and functional components, which indicates that Cistanche deserticola Y. C. Ma has the potential to develop functional food antioxidants and provides a theoretical basis for the clinical application of Cistanche deserticola Y. C. Ma in the future.