What depth should divers avoid exceeding to reduce the risk of decompression sickness during no decompression dives?

To minimize the risk of decompression sickness during no decompression dives, divers are generally advised to avoid exceeding a depth of 30 metres. This depth limit is based on the physiological effects of pressure and the amount of nitrogen that can be safely absorbed into the body tissues without requiring staged decompression during ascent.

Diving deeper than 30 metres increases the amount of nitrogen taken up by the tissues, which can lead to a situation where a diver exceeds their no-decompression limits. This can result in longer required ascent times and the potential for developing decompression sickness, often referred to as "the bends."

Establishing a depth limit like 30 metres helps divers to remain within safer boundaries where they can ascend directly to the surface without needing to perform mandatory decompression stops, significantly reducing the risks associated with rapid changes in pressure. As dives proceed deeper than this threshold, the encountered risks and complexity associated with gas absorption and elimination increase drastically, which is why many dive training organizations emphasize this limit for recreational diving without specific decompression procedures.