What doctors want CMA Fest goers to know about air quality this weekend in Nashville

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - People in Nashville may have noticed some hazy skies in the middle of the week ahead of CMA Fest.

Doctors at Vanderbilt University Medical Center said they aren’t sure if this is from the wildfires in Canada or something else.

While the haze in Tennessee isn’t anything people in New York City or Washington DC are seeing, doctors said it still can affect certain populations.

A man visiting Nashville from Florida complained the air quality is making him cough.

“As soon as I get over here, I start coughing,” Josiph Souza said. He was out riding his bike on Broadway when he noticed his lungs hurt.

“Actually, our air quality right now is considered to be moderate,” said Dr. Stokes Peebles, with Vanderbilt Institute for Infection, Immunology, and Inflammation.

He said while the air is safe to breathe now, for some, fine particles in the air could harm them.

“But the smaller they are the more likely they are to get in the lower respiratory tract where they could potentially cause problems,” Peebles said.

If people with asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), or any respiratory problem are heading to Broadway this weekend, they may want to consider a mask.

“Not just a surgical mask, but an N-95 mask for those people who really do have bad problems,” Dr. Peebles said.

Vanderbilt doctors also said if it rains that could wash away particles in the air making it easier for people to breathe.

To see the air quality in your area, click here.

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