ABSTRACT
This chapter considers two key issues on healthcare for children: first, how were the developmental stages of children designated; and second, when taking into account the phases of growth, what was the recommended care for both the healthy child and the sick child in the ancient world that would help them reach maturity. The chapter demonstrates that the care of youths was intended not only to help them live to adulthood but also, more importantly, to shape them into well-formed adults. Ideally childbearing was intended to encourage a healthy development towards adulthood. Physicians advised that it was best for human beings to preserve their health rather than to become ill. Regardless of the physician's advice pertaining to the maintenance of a healthy body, children fell ill and sometimes died of their ailments. The concept of the Hippocratic humoral tradition was the basis for the care and treatment of children into the Middle Ages and early modern period.
