Neanderthals Used Plants as MedicationPicture a Neanderthal holding some herbs. What would you say he's about to do with them? If you said "give himself rectal hives by wiping with poison ivy," then you're . absolutely right, but that's not all they'd use plants for: They'd also eat very specific ones to cure specific ailments Neanderthals officially knew more about medicine than half of us.How do we know? It's all thanks to a group of intrepid scientists brave enough to probe cavemen teeth under a very strong microscope.