To minimize the risk of nitrogen narcosis, what is a crucial step for divers?

Limiting depth and duration of dives is a crucial step for minimizing the risk of nitrogen narcosis. Nitrogen narcosis occurs when divers breathe nitrogen at high pressures, which can have intoxicating effects that impair judgment and motor skills. The deeper a diver goes, the greater the pressure and, consequently, the higher the partial pressure of nitrogen that is being breathed. By keeping dives shallower and of shorter duration, divers reduce their exposure to elevated partial pressures of nitrogen, thereby decreasing the likelihood of experiencing narcosis.

Furthermore, this approach not only mitigates the risk of narcosis but also helps divers manage their overall exposure to other potential dive-related hazards such as decompression sickness. In addition, safer diving practices—such as adhering to dive tables or computers—are built around these principles of depth and duration management, highlighting the importance of this strategy in maintaining diver safety and well-being.