text: I cannot speak on the air of formality as far as if the dust from the shell is toxic to the point that it can kill you, however I do have some personal experience with the dust.  In the pursuit of making some earrings, I inhaled a very small amount of dust into my lungs.  I could immedietly taste the calcium (similar taste and smell to your teeth getting drilled) and became nausious.  After about fifteen minutes I was having a hard time breathing altogether and ended up going to the hospital.  The doctors said that the dust has very small amounts of toxin in it, as does the meat of the abalone and both are extremely dangerous in large amounts.\n\nso my advice to you, and this is what i do now, is to wear a simple gas mask.  The gas mask I chose to get was roughly $60 and I have had absolutely no problems since i bought it.  When it comes to one's health, you can never be to careful or too cheap.