10 Best Difference between Digestion and Absorption with Table

What is the difference between digestion and absorption?

All animals take in food which undergoes various processes such as ingestion, digestion, absorption, and defecation. Digestion and absorption play a vital role in the growth and development of the organism.

The core difference between digestion and absorption is that digestion is the process of mechanical and chemical breakdown of food into building blocks while absorption is the process of assimilation of nutrients into the bloodstream

Difference between Digestion and Absorption

What Is Digestion?

Digestion is the mechanical and chemical breakdown of food particles into tiny building blocks. The process takes place in the digestive tract of an animal.

The digestion process is also known as catabolism since it involves breaking down of large molecules into smaller monomers.

The process of digestion starts in the mouth through the stomach and ends in the jejunum. Teeth in the mouth are responsible for the mechanical process and enzymes for the chemical process.

What Is Absorption?

Absorption is the process of assimilating nutrients into the bloodstream. The process of absorption begins in the stomach through the small intestines and end in the large intestines.

The mechanism responsible for facilitating absorptions is active transport, passive diffusion, endocytosis, and facilitative diffusion.

Comparison Chart: Digestion Vs Absorption

Basic Terms	Digestion	Absorption
Meaning	It is the mechanical and chemical breakdown of food	It is the process of assimilating nutrients into the body
Occurrence in animals	Gastrointestinal tract	Mucosal epithelium of the small intestine
Occurrence in fungi	Secretion of enzymes on the external food source	Cell wall
Commencement	Mouth in animal	Stomach in animals
Caused by	The action of digestive enzyme	Either active or passive transport
Energy Requirement	Require energy to breakdown food	No energy is required
Role	Mechanically and chemically breakdown of food to enhance absorption	Intake of nutrients and release into the bloodstream
Connection with blood	Does not relate to blood	Tend to relate with blood
Changes in the structure of the food	Mechanical and chemical structure of food changes	No change in the structure of the food

Core Differences between Digestion and Absorption

Digestion is the mechanical and chemical breakdown of large particles to smaller particles while absorption is the assimilation of nutrients into the bloodstream
Digestion starts in the mouth and absorption in the stomach
Digestion occurs inside the intestinal tract while absorption inside the intestines
Digestion end in the duodenum while absorption in the ileum and jejunum
Digestion requires energy to breakdown food while energy is not required during absorption
Food experience mechanical and chemical change in structure while in absorption have no such changes
Absorption has a close relationship with blood while digestion has no connection with blood
Digestion tends to involve digestive enzymes while absorption does not entail enzymes
Digestion works well on large and complex digestion matter only while absorption on simple digestive and non-digestive components
Absorption is triggered by either active or passive transport while digestion is not triggered at all.

Similarities between Digestion and Absorption

Both involve the digestive system
Both occur in heterotrophs
Both are sequential events
Both require energy

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Comparison Video

Summary

The main difference between digestion and absorption is that digestion is the mechanical and chemical process of breaking down large food particles to smaller ones while absorption is the assimilation of nutrients into the bloodstream.