Which statement about excretion is true?

Which statement about excretion is true?

• A. Small amounts of drugs may be excreted in urine, sweat, feces, breath, and breast milk.
• B. Only urine
• C. Only breath
• D. Feces only

Answer: (A)

Excretion is how the body gets rid of drugs and their metabolites, and it isn’t limited to urine. While the kidneys are the main route for elimination, the body can also remove drugs through several other pathways. Small amounts can be found in urine, but drugs and metabolites can also appear in sweat, feces, breath, and even breast milk. This mixture of routes happens because drugs are processed by the liver and then secreted into bile or excreted in urine, while some volatile components can leave the body via exhaled air, and glands can shed drugs onto the skin or into breast milk. So the statement that excretion involves urine, sweat, feces, breath, and breast milk reflects the diverse ways the body eliminates drugs. The other options would be incomplete because they imply a single route, whereas multiple routes can contribute to elimination.

Excretion is how the body gets rid of drugs and their metabolites, and it isn’t limited to urine. While the kidneys are the main route for elimination, the body can also remove drugs through several other pathways. Small amounts can be found in urine, but drugs and metabolites can also appear in sweat, feces, breath, and even breast milk. This mixture of routes happens because drugs are processed by the liver and then secreted into bile or excreted in urine, while some volatile components can leave the body via exhaled air, and glands can shed drugs onto the skin or into breast milk. So the statement that excretion involves urine, sweat, feces, breath, and breast milk reflects the diverse ways the body eliminates drugs. The other options would be incomplete because they imply a single route, whereas multiple routes can contribute to elimination.