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Herbal Medicine is considered as an alternative medicine because it is not based on evidences gathered by using scientific method. The scope of herbal medicine is extended to bee and fungal products, as well as shells, minerals and certain parts of animals. Although modern medicine is getting advanced today, herbal medicine is still widely use nowadays.

According to DAILY NATION, patients at western Kenya counties are turning to herbal medicines. They turned to herbalists to cure their diseases because doctors continue to strike and paralyze the services in hospitals throughout Kenya.

Herbalists from Kisii and Kisumu counties are cashing in on the strike to sell herbal medicines to various patients who can't pay for costly private hospitals. There are also a number of poster displays announcing their services.

Three months ago, doctors began their strike and demanding the implementation of a 2013 collective bargaining agreement. Several rounds of negotiations have been made. But they still failed to reach a pay deal.

Enock Nyakeruri, Kisii County Herbalist and Research Center chairman, said that the number his patients increased since the strike started. He also said that the herbs that they are using are very effective especially in diseases like typhoid, impotency, epilepsy, infertility and amoeba.

On the other hand, Jessica Atieno Omuok, a popular herbalist known as Mama Winnie said that when the strike of doctors began on December 5, the patients seeking her service also increased. Mama Winnie treats ailments such as herpes, ovarian cyst, malaria, typhoid and ears and nose problems and is living in Kisule village in Kisumu County.

Another herbalist at the Kisii Stadium named Linda Kemunto said that he had cured a number of patients that are complaining from sexually transmitted infections and stomachache. And as a result of treating her patients successfully, she had gained some trusting clientele.

Herbal medicine is becoming popular in western Kenya counties especially with the continuous strike of doctors. But according to Health Canal, some traditional herbal preparations contain toxic chemicals from animals and plants, as well as pesticides and heavy metals.