What Causes a Bunion?

What is a Bunion?

A bunion is a deformity of the big toe. A bunion is a toe that points at a sideways angle towards your second toe. There is also a characteristic bump on the inner side of the foot.

As the bunion becomes more prominent, bunion pain can develop. The medical term for a foot bunion is hallux valgus.

What Causes a Bunion?

Bunions are a result of complex biomechanical changes that occur in your feet.

The type of footwear that you wear does cause bunions. We know that foot bunions occur in about 30% of the population of most Western countries but only 3% in Eastern countries. They are seen most commonly in women and become more common as people get older.

Tight-fitting shoes are thought to be the main cause of bunions.. Shoes such as high heels and shoes with tight toe boxes (eg womens fashion shoes and cowboy boots) are particularly damaging to the toes. These shoes have a sloping foot bed and a narrow toe box.

The slope causes the front of the foot to bear your weight, which encourages your forefoot to widen. Also, the angle pushes your toes into the narrow toe box, causing the toes to become angled and squeezed together.

With prolonged wearing of constraining footwear your toes will adapt to the new position and lead to the deformity we know as a foot bunion.

Footwear is not the only cause of a bunion. Injuries to the foot can also be a factor in developing a bunion. Poor foot arch control leading to flat feet or foot overpronation does make you biomechanically susceptible to foot bunions.

A family history of bunions also increases your likelihood of developing bunions.

Many people who have a bunion have a combination of factors that makes them susceptible to having this condition.

For example, if you are a women over the age of forty with a family history of bunions, and often wear high-heeled shoes, you would be considered highly likely to develop a bunion.