Proper research of traditional medicinal plants and their uses in the Masaai Community of Kenya
Abstract
Approximately 80% of the rural populations in developing countries rely on
traditional medicinal plants for their health care needs. As a result, people have
developed their knowledge of these traditional medicines through their experiences
and daily observations. In the Maasai community, this information is deeply rooted
in their culture, transferred from one generation to the next orally and along gender
lines. The vast majority of traditionally used medicinal plants have yet to be
adequately evaluated. This study seeks to explore the traditional medicinal plants
used by the Maasai for medicinal purposes with the aim of identifying the salient
medicinal plants and their uses for phytochemical research. The extraction methods
used aim to mimic as closely as possible the traditional methods to produce as
closely as possible the traditional ‘herbal’ drug so as topreserve potential active
constituents of the plant part. The selection of solvent system largely depends on
the specific nature of the bioactive compound being targeted and this also
influences the methods of purification and separation to be used.