Breastfeeding in Spanish

What it means

Breastfeeding is the act of feeding breast milk to an infant, according to the National Cancer Institute (NCI) dictionary, which also gives nursing as another name. Babies can be fed directly from the mother's breast, or breast milk can be pumped and then fed to the baby from a bottle. Breast milk contains calories, vitamins, minerals, and other important nutrients that help an infant grow and develop, and it contains antibodies, which help protect the infant against some infections. MedlinePlus notes that some medicines, illegal drugs, and alcohol can pass through the breast milk and cause harm to the baby, and it suggests contacting a lactation consultant when there are problems with breastfeeding. This page explains the word only and is not medical advice.

Spanish term: Lactancia materna
Gender and article: feminine: la lactancia materna
Pronunciation: lahk-TAHN-syah mah-TEHR-nah

Other Spanish terms	Where it is used	Note
amamantamiento	General	Given by the National Cancer Institute's Spanish dictionary as another name for lactancia materna.
lactancia natural	General	Given by the National Cancer Institute's Spanish dictionary as another name for lactancia materna.

Lactancia materna is the headword of the National Cancer Institute's Spanish dictionary and the phrase that opens the MedlinePlus en español summary, although that health topic page is titled simply Lactancia. The Real Academia Española dictionary marks lactancia as a feminine noun, defines it as the action of nursing or of suckling (acción de amamantar o de mamar), and gives lactancia artificial, materna, natural as examples under its sense of a feeding system made up exclusively of milk.

The National Cancer Institute's Spanish dictionary says lactancia materna is also called amamantamiento and lactancia natural. The verb MedlinePlus en español uses is amamantar. Other words from the same two sources are leche materna (breast milk), lactante (the infant, in the dictionary's definition), sacaleche (the pump named in the dictionary entry), biberón (bottle) and especialista en lactancia, which appears in MedlinePlus en español where the English page says lactation consultant.

Phrases for an appointment

What a patient or a clinician might say, in English and Spanish:

Who	English	Spanish
Clinician	Are you planning to breastfeed your baby?	¿Piensa amamantar a su bebé?
Patient	Yes, but it hurts when the baby latches on. Is that normal?	Sí, pero me duele cuando el bebé se prende al pecho. ¿Es normal?
Clinician	How many times does the baby nurse in twenty-four hours?	¿Cuántas veces toma el pecho el bebé en veinticuatro horas?
Patient	How can I tell whether my baby is getting enough breast milk?	¿Cómo puedo saber si mi bebé está recibiendo suficiente leche materna?
Patient	I take medicine every day. Can it pass into my breast milk?	Tomo un medicamento todos los días. ¿Puede pasar a la leche materna?
Clinician	Would you like to see a lactation consultant before you leave the hospital?	¿Le gustaría ver a un especialista en lactancia antes de salir del hospital?
Patient	I am going back to work next month. Can I pump milk and give it in a bottle?	Vuelvo al trabajo el mes que viene. ¿Puedo extraerme la leche y dársela en un biberón?
Clinician	Have you been writing down each feeding and each wet diaper?	¿Ha estado anotando cada toma y cada pañal mojado?

In 9 languages

Language	Term
English	Breastfeeding
Spanish (Español)	Lactancia materna
Chinese (中文)	母乳哺育
Korean (한국어)	모유 수유
Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt)	Cho con bú sữa mẹ
Filipino (Tagalog)	Pagpapasuso
Portuguese (Português)	Amamentação
Thai (ภาษาไทย)	การให้นมบุตร
Japanese (日本語)	母乳育児

Where you'll see it

birth planpostpartum visit notesdischarge summarynewborn visit notes

Related ICD-10-CM category

ICD-10-CM code: Z39 → Encounter for maternal postpartum care and examination

Related terms

Your right to an interpreter in the United States

If English is not your primary language and you have difficulty communicating in English, you may need an interpreter or a translated document when you visit a doctor or dentist, go to the emergency room or pick up a prescription. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights states that two federal laws, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, require programs that receive its funding to provide language access services free of charge.

You can ask when you make the appointment or at the front desk: "I need an interpreter, please." «Necesito un intérprete, por favor.»

More terms: Reproductive health and pregnancy

All terms in this area: Reproductive health and pregnancy — Salud reproductiva y embarazo

Sources

This page is a language reference. It is not medical advice.