How to Review and Modify the Health Data Tracked by Your iPhone
If you own an iPhone, you’re likely familiar with the preinstalled Health app, which serves as a central hub for tracking your health and fitness data, from your daily steps to your dietary intake.
Whether you actively use the app daily, possibly in conjunction with an Apple Watch, or seldom open it, it’s important to review the data it collects and the apps and devices it interacts with.
Understanding Your Health App Data
The Health app automatically tracks your steps and walking or running distances. If paired with an Apple Watch, it will also record data from various exercises and movements. Additionally, you can input personal details like blood type and date of birth in the Health Profile section.
By default, your Health app data is synced with iCloud, where it benefits from end-to-end encryption if two-factor authentication is enabled. If you prefer to keep your data solely on your iPhone, go to Settings, tap your name, select iCloud, then Health, and turn off iCloud syncing. Note that the data is encrypted with your passcode or Face ID when the device is locked.
Uninstalling the Health app does not remove the data it has collected. To delete both the app and its data, you need to manually clear your records within the app before removing it from your iPhone.
To delete specific data, open the Health app, tap on each data category, and use the “Show All Data” link. From there, you can tap Edit and choose to erase some or all of the records.
Checking What Your Health App Is Tracking
To see what data the Health app is monitoring, open the app and check the Summary screen. The Browse tab lists all the data categories, including medications and sleep. Tap on any category to view records.
For details on the sources of your data, tap “Data Sources & Access” on each data type screen. This will show you whether the information is coming from your iPhone, Apple Watch, or third-party apps.
Stopping Your iPhone from Tracking Health Data
To stop tracking data, go to the main iOS Settings screen. Select Health to see the list of connected apps, where you can delete their data and disconnect them.
To disable activity tracking (including steps) on your iPhone, go to Settings, select Privacy & Security, then Motion & Fitness, and toggle the Fitness Tracking switch off. You can also control which third-party apps can track activity data.
Stopping Your Apple Watch from Tracking Health Data
If you use an Apple Watch, you can stop it from logging activity by opening the Watch app on your iPhone, going to the My Watch tab, selecting Privacy, and toggling off the Fitness Tracking switch. This action will not delete previously logged data; use the Health app to clear that data if necessary.
Checking Shared Health Data
To review who has access to your Health data, open the app and tap the Sharing tab. You can see current connections, manage which types of data you’re sharing, and disable any connections you no longer wish to maintain.
This review will help you manage and control the health data your iPhone and connected devices are tracking and sharing.
