Abstract
BackgroundThe medicinal plants used by herbalists in Kenya have not been well documented, despite their widespread use. The threat of complete disappearance of the knowledge on herbal medicine from factors such as deforestation, lack of proper regulation, overexploitation and sociocultural issues warrants an urgent need to document the information. The purpose of the study was to document information on medicinal plants used by herbalists in Marakwet District towards the utilization of indigenous ethnobotanical knowledge for the advancement of biomedical research and development.MethodsSemi- structured oral interviews were conducted with 112 practicing herbalists. The types of plants used were identified and the conditions treated recorded.ResultsHerbal practice is still common in the district, and 111 plants were identified to have medicinal or related uses. Different herbal preparations including fruits and healing vegetables are employed in the treatment of various medical conditions. Veterinary uses and pesticides were also recorded.ConclusionThe study provides comprehensive ethnobotanical information about herbal medicine and healing methods among the Marakwet community. The identification of the active ingredients of the plants used by the herbalists may provide some useful leads for the development of new drugs.
Highlights
The medicinal plants used by herbalists in Kenya have not been well documented, despite their widespread use
Study area The study was conducted within Marakwet district, which is located in the North rift Valley region of Kenya (Figures 1, 2)
The 108 identified plants belonged to of 53 families. This compares well to previous studies that were done in Mt Elgon, where the other Kalenjin, the Sabaot reside [21], but significantly higher than that of their Nandi cousins [20]. This could be attributed to the diverse ecosystem in both Marakwet and Mt Elgon regions, and the fact that herbal practice is still widespread in the two districts
Summary
The medicinal plants used by herbalists in Kenya have not been well documented, despite their widespread use. The threat of complete disappearance of the knowledge on herbal medicine from factors such as deforestation, lack of proper regulation, overexploitation and sociocultural issues warrants an urgent need to document the information. The purpose of the study was to document information on medicinal plants used by herbalists in Marakwet District towards the utilization of indigenous ethnobotanical knowledge for the advancement of biomedical research and development. Traditional herbal medicine is still an important component of healthcare in sub-Saharan Africa. This is largely due to poverty, inadequacy of health services and shortage of health workers. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that up to 80% of the population in some developing countries use traditional medicine [4,5]
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