Ron Hoggan wrote:
> I'm posting this to the list because I think some important
> information has been missed in this thread. However, I did 
> miss a few posts so maybe these issues have already been 
> covered.  Bunions may or may not be related to gout. They can 
> be the result of foot mechanics, an inherited foot type, 
> problematic shoes, gout or who knows what else. 
> 
> Gout is the only diet-related cause I know of.

I did cover this in earlier posts on bunions, Ron. Dr. Cordain and Ray
Audette believe that many chronic disorders that are not thought to have a
dietary connection (such as acne, arthritis, male pattern baldness, etc.)
actually do. It is my contention, and I think Susan's, that a bunion is
likely another one of these disorders that has an unrecognized dietary
component. However, just because diet contributes to the development of a
disorder does not guarantee that dietary improvement will cure or alleviate
the disorder, as has been stated  many times.

Connective tissue disorders also appear to have a dietary component (see
http://www.ctds.info for tons of info on this). I think that certain
structural defects in the feet, such as pes planus (flat feet) and very high
arches, may be connective tissue disorders. Flat feet, like many connective
tissue disorders, is associated with magnesium deficiency (see
http://www.ctds.info/magnesium.html). Flat feet and very high arches are
also risk factors for bunions.

Here is the chain that links bunions to diet: bunions are a form of
bursitis; bursitis is a form of arthritis; arthritis has been identified as
having a dietary component (Cordain and Audette). Like many dietary
disorders, bunions can involve nutritional imbalance (too little serum
magnesium and too much serum calcium), calcium deposition, inflammation,
connective tissue defects, possible malabsorption, etc. 

Gluten foods and dairy products may be the major dietary contributors, based
on numerous indirect indications. One of these indications is that Celiac
disease patients have higher rates of arthritis and connective tissue
disorders (such as flat feet) than the general population. If someone were
to check, I'll bet that celiac patients would be found to have higher than
average rates of bunions as well, given the assocations of bunions with
arthritis and connective tissue disorders.

> Gout results,
> in part, from inadequate kidney function. Uric acid is not 
> being adequately cleared from the blood. Uric acid comes from 
> meats, seafoods, aspirin, diuretics, and alcohol. 

I think Cordain or someone argued convincingly that modern foods are a
bigger culprit in the development of gout than meats and seafoods, though
these foods can aggravate the condition in some people, but I don't recall
where I read it.

> But not everybody who has high uric acid levels in their
> blood develops gout. And not everyone who has gout has high 
> uric acid levels in their blood. There are some as-yet 
> unknown factors at work. 

My guess is that the unknown factors are mostly modern foods. Like arthritis
and diabetes, I'll bet that gout is rare among traditional hunter-gatherers.