During what process does the body convert a drug into a form that can be eliminated?

Metabolism is the process in which the body converts a drug into a form that can be eliminated. This typically occurs in the liver, where enzymatic reactions modify the chemical structure of the drug, making it more water-soluble. This transformation allows for easier excretion from the body through urine or bile.

The metabolic process can involve various reactions, including oxidation, reduction, hydrolysis, and conjugation, which collectively aim to make substances less toxic and more easily eliminated. By altering the drug in this way, metabolism plays a crucial role in pharmacology, influencing the duration and intensity of a drug's action as well as the timing of its elimination from the body.

In contrast, distribution refers to how a drug disperses throughout the body's tissues after it enters the bloodstream. Absorption involves how the drug is taken into the body, typically through the gastrointestinal tract, while excretion is the final step of eliminating substances from the body, which relies on prior metabolism to prepare the drug for this process. All these phases are interconnected, but metabolism is specifically focused on the transformation of drugs for elimination.