What are the three steps involved in metabolism?

The correct answer highlights three essential processes involved in metabolism: digestion, absorption, and transport.

Digestion is the initial step where food is broken down into its component nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, and proteins, so that they can be utilized by the body. This process occurs in the gastrointestinal tract and involves mechanical and chemical breakdown of food.

Absorption follows digestion, as the nutrients, once broken down, need to be taken up into the bloodstream or lymphatic system. This step ensures that the nutrients are delivered to the body's cells for energy production, growth, and repair.

Transport is the final step in this trio, where the absorbed nutrients are moved throughout the body. This is crucial to distribute the necessary components to cells where metabolic processes take place, including energy production and biosynthesis of new molecules.

These three steps form a comprehensive understanding of how nutrients are processed in the body, laying the foundation for broader metabolic functions. The other options do not accurately encompass the critical processes central to metabolism or include irrelevant terms that do not pertain specifically to nutrient processing in the metabolic context.