How is excess iron primarily eliminated from the body?

Excess iron is primarily eliminated from the body by being stored as ferritin and subsequently sloughed off in feces. Ferritin serves as a storage form of iron that can be found in various tissues, where it binds excess iron safely to prevent toxicity. When the body has more iron than it needs, it cannot actively excrete it through urine or other means; instead, the excess iron is typically stored or incorporated into cells. Over time, as cells die and are shed, the ferritin-bound iron is also expelled in feces.

This process is crucial because the body lacks a regulated mechanism for excreting excess iron directly; therefore, managing iron levels largely involves absorption control and storage. The other options provided describe processes that do not accurately characterize how the body manages surplus iron effectively.