[Jewelry making - Article 00543] - Re: [Orchid] Polishing up oyster shells

[Paul Anderson]

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>     I have known people who were sickened by it, though - made acutely
>     ill in a matter of minutes or hours - from grinding it in a
>     standard lapidary situation. Oyster shells, pearls, padak shells -
>     all that stuff and more has a dust hazard that's moderately bad
>     for you. Abalone is the only one I've heard of that's actually
>     poisonous or acutely hazardous. 

    It appears that the calcium carbonate is bonded together in the
    shell by a protein, and this protein can provoke an allergic
    reaction. 

    Quoting from Wikipedia: 

        The calcium carbonate is a respiratory irritant and the
        particles can penetrate into the lower respiratory tree and cause
        irritant bronchitis and other respiratory irritation responses.
        The usual symptoms are cough and sputum production, and secondary
        infections can occur. If there are proteins left in the shell
        matrix, it is also possible that they can trigger an allergic
        (asthmatic) attack. In general, the more someone is exposed to
        something that triggers their asthma reaction, the larger the
        reaction. Allergic skin reactions can also occur. 

Paul Anderson
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