The China Association of Health Promotion and Education kicked off a charity program in Beijing on July 27 to raise people's awareness of macular degeneration, the third-leading cause of vision loss among seniors globally.

Also known as age-related macular degeneration, the condition mostly occurs on people older than 45, and often results in blurred or loss of central vision in one or both eyes.

In China, there are about 4 million seniors — people older than 60 — suffering from the condition, and it is the No 1 cause for the seniors' severe vision loss in China.

Through health education across the county, such as lectures by medical experts, and dissemination of disease prevention and treatment information brochures, the charity program aims to increase people's awareness of the threat, and to invite people to seek treatment and follow doctors' advice.

Chengdu-based Kanghong Pharmaceutical, a Chinese pharmaceutical company leading in biomedicine, sponsored the program.