Water and Ice Safety with Bronchiectasis

Do you ever laugh at yourself for not seeing the whole picture? I sure do. I remember hearing that some people with bronchiectasis and NTM are told not to drink tap water. 

I thought the issue was simply the bacteria in the water itself.

I had no idea that the real concern was how those bacteria could be aspirated into the lungs through reflux. That was a true deer-in-the-headlights moment for me.

At first, I handled the issue by boiling pot after pot of water. Then I moved on to buying jugs of bottled water, which took up precious real estate in our one-bedroom apartment. Eventually, I settled on the LifeStraw pitcher, which felt like a better long-term fit.

But what never crossed my mind was that the same concerns applied to ice. Ice trays, built-in refrigerator ice makers, and even refrigerator filters can harbor bacteria and biofilm.

Once I learned that, things clicked. Now I am much more cautious with ice, and when I visit my daughters, I skip the built-in ice and water dispensers. In restaurants, I rarely order drinks that come from taps, and I avoid water coolers because they can develop internal biofilm.

Looking back, I realize I probably was not ready to understand everything all at once. I needed the information to build slowly over time. And that is perfectly okay.
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Sometimes it really can feel like too much until we baby-step our way into new habits.