The prolongation of survival in mice by dietary antioxidants depends on their age by the start of feeding this diet.

The effect of daily dietary supplements of an antioxidant mixture (AM) consisting of beta carotene, alpha tocopherol, ascorbic acid, rutin, selenium, and zinc on the survival of male C57BL/6 mice starting at 2, 9, 16, and 23 months of age was investigated. The survival of mice given AM starting at 2 and 9 months of age was found to increase significantly (from 86 to 108 days) compared to the control. The times, of 50, 90, and 100% mortality in mice given AM starting at 2 and 9 months of age increased by 16-9.5% compared to the control, whereas in mice given AM, starting at 16 and 23 months of age, no effect was observed.