Hi Lyle,
You’re not paranoid, you’re just trying to take precautions. I do as well. According to Dr. Joseph Falkinham, who runs in NTM lab at Virginia tech, distilled water is not sterile. Although the water itself is sterile, the equipment to remove the metals is not.

When showering, I use a showerhead with large holes so very little mist is created. And I take short showers. Also, I swap out my showerhead every six weeks or so with an under $20 one from Amazon. I had thought to perhaps buy six of them and rotate them, but Dr. Falkinham said that in a study they did in his lab, after seven weeks although NTM was desiccated on the culture plate, about half of the bacteria were still viable. So, instead of rotating showerheads, I just replace them. And then donate them to Habitat for Humanity.

It’s so interesting to read how we all are trying to protect ourselves in different ways. Best, Linda Esposito

I was told that distilled is not safe nor is spring water. Adding life straw to either makes it safe or boiling.