Reingesting

Reingesting refers to the act of consuming something again after it has already been ingested previously. The term is used in several unrelated contexts, including biology, medicine, data management, and environmental health, where the meaning is dependent on the field.

In biology and animal physiology, reingestion is most often discussed in the context of coprophagy or cecotrophy, practices in which some animals, such as rabbits, reingest certain types of feces to recover nutrients like B vitamins and nitrogen. This is a natural, adaptive behavior that supports nutrient uptake and energy balance.

In human health and clinical settings, reingestion can describe the renewed ingestion of substances after an initial intake. This can occur accidentally, such as double-dosing a medication, or in the course of poisoning management where repeated ingestion alters exposure. Reingestion raises concerns about dosage, toxicity, and safety, and may require medical assessment or intervention.

In data management and information systems, reingestion denotes the practice of importing data into a system a second time, often to correct errors, update records, or accommodate schema changes. While reingestion can improve data quality and currency, it also risks duplication and requires careful control, deduplication, and provenance tracking within data pipelines.

In environmental and ecological contexts, reingestion may describe repeated exposure to contaminants through food, water, or habitat residues, contributing to cumulative risk assessments and exposure modeling.