Ethnopharmacological survey of the medicinal plants used in Tindiret, Nandi County, Kenya

Abstract

Background: An inventory of the medicinal plants used by herbalists to treat various ailments in Tindiret area of Nandi County, Kenya was conducted by a team comprising of medical researchers and botanists with a view to preserve indigenous ethnobotanical knowledge and potential research and development of new drugs.Materials and Methods: Data was collected from practicing herbalists through semi-structured interviews, group discussions and observations. The types of medical conditions treated, treatment methods as well as the plants used were recorded.Results and Conclusion: A total of 50 medicinal plants belonging to 28 families used for the treatment of 32 medical conditions were recorded. The disease conditions which were treated by the highest number of plants were abdominal/colic pains with 15 different plants recorded (13%), respiratory disorders 15(13%) and infertility14 (12%). The most widely used medicinal plants were Vernonia amygdalina 7(7%), Toddalia asiatica 6(6%), Aloe kedongensis 5(5%) and Zanthoxylum gilletii 5(5%); whereas the families with the highest number of plant usage were Fabaceae 8(14%), Lamiaceae 4(8%) and Solanaceae 4(8%) plants respectively. The study documents important ethno-medical knowledge on the plants used by herbalists in Tindiret sub-county.Keywords: Ethnopharmacology, Indigenous knowledge, Traditional medicine, Research, Conservation