A lot of people, and doctors in particular, tend to have a reflex of the upper lip when things like mudras, yoga, chanting, shamans, roots, and berries are suggested as being on a par with their own offerings. And many of their patients, enthralled by their costume and regalia - white coat and stethoscope, a trick any shaman could explain - adopt a similar attitude.

But if we think about it-
1) Our ancestors were just as intelligent as we are;
2) Though they lacked the width of our database, in some areas their depth far exceeded our own. Try memorizing a thousand plants - where and when to gather them, how to prepare them, what each part is good for, etc - and you get the idea.
3) They were far better observers than we are;
4) Often going through periods of just surviving, things requiring a lot of energy that offered no benefit were quickly jettisoned.

Best we consider such things carefully.