Hello everyone, my app is designed to help people sleep. It has been rejected multiple times due to issues with version 1.4.1 during the submission process. However, the app simply evaluates users’ insomnia and anxiety status based on their responses to questions and provides some relaxation methods. It does not involve any medical-related content. The reviewer provided screenshots of the assessment results page and some relaxation techniques. How should I handle this issue?
Use HealthKit to enable your iOS and watchOS apps to work with the Apple Health app.
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Hello everyone, my app is designed to help people sleep. It has been rejected multiple times due to issues with version 1.4.1 during the submission process. However, the app simply evaluates users’ insomnia and anxiety status based on their responses to questions and provides some relaxation methods. It does not involve any medical-related content. The reviewer provided screenshots of the assessment results page and some relaxation techniques. How should I handle this issue?
Has anyone had success using the HKWorkoutRouteBuilder in conjunction with the new iOS support for HKLiveWorkoutBuilder?
I was running my watchOS code that worked now brought over to iOS and when I call insertRouteData the function never returns. This happens for both the legacy and closure based block patterns.
private var workoutSession: HKWorkoutSession?
private var workoutBuilder: HKLiveWorkoutBuilder?
private var serviceSession: CLServiceSession?
private var workoutRouteBuilder: HKWorkoutRouteBuilder?
private func startRouteBuilder() {
Task { @MainActor in
self.serviceSession = CLServiceSession(authorization: .whenInUse)
self.workoutRouteBuilder = self.workoutBuilder?.seriesBuilder(for: .workoutRoute()) as? HKWorkoutRouteBuilder
self.locationUpdateTask = Task {
do {
for try await update in CLLocationUpdate.liveUpdates(.fitness) {
if let location = update.location {
self.logger.notice(#function, metadata: [
"location": .stringConvertible(location)
])
try await self.workoutRouteBuilder?.insertRouteData([location])
self.logger.notice("Added location")
}
}
} catch {
self.logger.error(#function, metadata: [
"error": .stringConvertible(error.localizedDescription)
])
}
}
}
}
I did also try CLLocationManager API with delegate which is what my current watch code uses (a bit old). Same issue.
Here is what I've found so far:
If the workout session is not running, and if the builder hasn't started collection yet, inserting route data works just fine
I've tried different swift language modes, flipped from main actor to non isolated project settings (Xcode 26)
Modified Apple's sample code and added location route building to that and reproduced the error, modified sample attached to feedback
This issue was identified against Xcode 26 beta 2 and iPhone 16 Pro simulator. Works as expected on my iPhone 13 Pro beta 2.
FB18603581 - HealthKit: HKWorkoutRouteBuilder insert call within CLLocationUpdate task never returns
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Health & Fitness
Tags:
Beta
Health and Fitness
HealthKit
WorkoutKit
I'm using following filters to fetch swimming activities from HealthKit.
For some users it fetches all workouts (pool && open water) but for other it skips some open water activities. See screenshot, all those swimming activities are not fetched by following code.
let startDate = Calendar.current.date(byAdding: .month, value: -1, to: Date())!
let endDate = Date()
let swimmingPredicate = HKQuery.predicateForWorkouts(with: .swimming)
let timePredicate = HKQuery.predicateForSamples(withStart: startDate, end: endDate, options: .strictStartDate)
let predicate = NSCompoundPredicate(andPredicateWithSubpredicates: [swimmingPredicate, timePredicate])
let query = HKSampleQuery(sampleType: .workoutType(),
predicate: predicate,
limit: HKObjectQueryNoLimit,
sortDescriptors: [.init(keyPath: \HKSample.startDate, ascending: false)],
resultsHandler: { [weak self] query, samples, error in
...
Could someone help with ideads what is missing in this case?
In iOS 26, HKLiveWorkoutBuilder is supported, which we can use like HKWorkoutSession in watchOS - this is very exciting.
However, it currently seems to have a bug in calculating calories.
I tested it in my app, and for nearly 6 minutes with an average heart rate of 134, it only calculated 8 calories consumed (80 calories per hour), including basal consumption, which is obviously incorrect.
(I used Powerboats Pro 2 connected to my phone, which includes heart rate data, and HKLiveWorkoutBuilder correctly collected the heart rate, which is great.)
I think my code is correct.
func workoutBuilder(_ workoutBuilder: HKLiveWorkoutBuilder, didCollectDataOf collectedTypes: Set<HKSampleType>) {
for type in collectedTypes {
guard let quantityType = type as? HKQuantityType else {
return // Nothing to do.
}
let statistics = workoutBuilder.statistics(for: quantityType)
if let statistics = statistics {
switch statistics.quantityType {
case HKQuantityType.quantityType(forIdentifier: .heartRate):
/// - Tag: SetLabel
let heartRateUnit = HKUnit.count().unitDivided(by: HKUnit.minute())
let value = statistics.mostRecentQuantity()?.doubleValue(for: heartRateUnit)
let roundedValue = Double( round( 1 * value! ) / 1 )
if let avg = statistics.averageQuantity()?.doubleValue(for: heartRateUnit) {
self.avgHeartRate = avg
}
self.delegate?.didUpdateHeartBeat(self, heartBeat: Int(roundedValue))
case HKQuantityType.quantityType(forIdentifier: .activeEnergyBurned):
let energyUnit = HKUnit.kilocalorie()
let value = statistics.sumQuantity()?.doubleValue(for: energyUnit)
self.totalActiveEnergyBurned = Double(value!)
print("didUpdate totalActiveEnergyBurned: \(self.totalActiveEnergyBurned)")
self.delegate?.didUpdateEnergyBurned(self, totalEnergy: self.totalActiveEnergyBurned + self.totalBasalEneryBurned)
return
case HKQuantityType.quantityType(forIdentifier: .basalEnergyBurned):
let energyUnit = HKUnit.kilocalorie()
let value = statistics.sumQuantity()?.doubleValue(for: energyUnit)
self.totalBasalEneryBurned = Double(value!)
print("didUpdate totalBasalEneryBurned: \(self.totalBasalEneryBurned)")
self.delegate?.didUpdateEnergyBurned(self, totalEnergy: self.totalActiveEnergyBurned + self.totalBasalEneryBurned)
return
default:
print("unhandled quantityType=\(statistics.quantityType) when processing statistics")
return
}
}
I think I've found the source of the problem:
let workoutConfiguration = HKWorkoutConfiguration()
workoutConfiguration.activityType = .traditionalStrengthTraining //walking, running is ok
workoutConfiguration.locationType = .outdoor
When I set the activityType to walking or running, the calorie results are correct, showing several hundred calories per hour.
However, when activityType is set to traditionalStrengthTraining or jumprope, the calculations are incorrect.
PS:
I'm currently using Xcode 26 beta3 and iOS 26 beta3.
Hope this issue can be resolved. Thanks.
Hello,
What is the best practice for sending customized workouts to the Apple Watch.
For example, sending a running workout that entails:
Run 1 mile at 8:00/mile
Walk 2 minutes
Run 2 mile at 7:00/mile ----
Walk 2 minutes ----
Repeat 2x
Run 1 mile at 8:00/mile
Any documentation or sample codes would be amazing. Thank you
Hello everyone,
Ujjwal here, founder and CEO of a new iOS app in the mental wellness space.
Our mission is to provide accessible, AI-driven support for individuals dealing with anxiety, depression, and loneliness. From the very beginning, this has presented us with a unique and critical challenge: How do we effectively market an app to reach those who need it most, while upholding the absolute highest standards of user privacy?
We've built our app, ThunDroid, with a "privacy-by-design" philosophy. We leverage on-device processing for our core AI features, utilize end-to-end encryption, and have proudly integrated 'Sign in with Apple' to maximize user anonymity. We believe these are not just features, but ethical obligations to our users, especially given the nature of the data they trust us with.
The challenge, however, arises in marketing. This leads us to focus on mission-driven, organic marketing, but it's a slower path to reaching users who might be in immediate need of support.
This brings me to my question for this knowledgeable community.
What best practices or creative strategies have you found effective for marketing applications?
I appreciate any insights or experiences you're willing to share as we continue to grow ThunDroid responsibly.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
App Store link: (would love to hear your reviews)
[https://apps.apple.com/in/app/thundroid-ai-human-companion/id6746182736)
Topic:
App Store Distribution & Marketing
SubTopic:
General
Tags:
App Review
Health and Fitness
Marketing
Privacy
Hello,
In my application, I need to obtain precise workout segment data from HKWorkout in order to calculate per-kilometer metrics such as heart rate and pace.
My current approach is:
1.Use HKWorkout to fetch the associated HKWorkoutEvents.
2.Take the end time of one event as the start time of the next event to derive per-kilometer segment ranges.
The issue I’m facing:
•If a user sets Apple Watch to notify every 5 kilometers, then at 5 km, 10 km, 15 km, etc., I see overlapping event times.
•From the HKWorkoutEvents data alone, I cannot distinguish between events that represent “per-kilometer splits” and those that represent “5-kilometer notifications.”
•As a result, my per-kilometer heart rate and pace calculations can be inaccurate.
My question is:
Is there a recommended way to reliably differentiate per-kilometer splits from custom distance notifications and ensure accurate segment data retrieval?
For example, should I instead reconstruct segments using HKWorkoutRoute and distance samples, rather than relying on HKWorkoutEvents?
STEPS TO REPRODUCE
1.On Apple Watch, start an Outdoor Run using the Workout app.
2.In workout notifications, set distance alerts to every 5 kilometers.
3.During the run, when reaching 5 km, 10 km, 15 km, etc., the watch triggers notifications.
4.Query the corresponding HKWorkout from HealthKit and inspect its HKWorkoutEvents.
5.Notice that some event start times are duplicated, and it is unclear which events represent “per-kilometer splits” and which represent “5-kilometer notifications.”
Expected Result:
Be able to differentiate between per-kilometer splits and custom distance alerts, so that heart rate and pace per kilometer can be calculated accurately.
Actual Result:
The HKWorkoutEvents data contains duplicated event times without a way to distinguish event types, leading to inaccurate per-kilometer statistics.
I have an iPhone 11 Pro Max running iOS 26. But since iOS 18, Apple decided to remove the "Time in Bed" feature[1][2].
Is it possible to develop an app that, effectively, "brings back" this feature? It doesn't have to be that accurate. Just a gauge is fine.
As a starter I would like to track the time the phone was in Sleep mode (regardless whether the phone is being used).
I have a minimal programming background but have not developed an iOS app before so any help would be appreciated.
I found out about HealthKit[3] which lets me access (edit?) Health data, but I don't know where to go from there.
[1] https://www.reddit.com/r/iOSBeta/comments/1em8bl6/ios_181_db1_time_in_bed_via_iphone_feature_removed
[2] https://www.reddit.com/r/ios/comments/1fkjat4/apple_removed_the_iphoneonly_sleep_tracking
[3] https://developer.apple.com/documentation/healthkit
Summary:
Expanding HealthKit to support the full spectrum of smart scale metrics will allow Apple Health to remain the central hub for health data, align with user expectations, and future-proof the framework as body composition analysis evolves.
Description:
With the growing adoption of smart body composition scales (e.g. segmental impedance scanners, multi-frequency analyzers, and body pods), users are generating a wide variety of clinically relevant metrics that currently cannot be stored natively in HealthKit.
At present, HealthKit supports a core set of body composition values (Body Mass, BMI, Body Fat %, Lean Mass, Height, Waist Circumference). While useful, these do not capture the full picture modern devices provide, leading to fragmentation:
• Users can see dozens of metrics in the device app, but only a handful flow into Health.
• Developers must resort to metadata fields, which are inconsistent across apps and not accessible in Apple’s Health app UI.
This gap undermines HealthKit’s role as a central, standardized health record.
⸻
Proposed Additions:
Expand HealthKit HKQuantityTypeIdentifier to include additional body composition and derived measurements commonly reported by smart scales:
Core Body Composition
• Visceral fat percentage / rating
• Skeletal muscle mass
• Segmental muscle mass (arms, legs, trunk)
• Segmental fat mass (arms, legs, trunk)
• Bone mineral mass
• Total body water % / hydration
Derived Health Metrics
• Muscle-to-fat ratio
• Phase angle (bioelectrical impedance)
• Metabolic age
• Basal metabolic rate (BMR)
⸻
Rationale:
• User benefit: Health app would show a more complete health profile, not just weight and fat %.
• Developer benefit: Creates standardized identifiers, eliminating the need for proprietary storage in metadata.
• Industry alignment: Many leading health devices already provide these metrics; users expect them to sync into Health.
• Future-proofing: As body scanning scales proliferate, HealthKit can remain the trusted central repository rather than ceding ground to siloed vendor apps.
⸻
Suggested Implementation:
• Introduce new HKQuantityTypeIdentifier values for each metric.
• Permit segmental values to be represented as discrete samples with metadata for body region.
• Ensure values can be written by apps/devices and surfaced in Health app UI, just like existing body composition data.
We are developing a health app that relies on HKObserverQuery and BackgroundDelivery to monitor Heart Rate data. On watchOS 10.6 and 11.6 , these data updates are typically delivered reliably every 8–12 minutes, occasionally exceeding 12 minutes, but generally not longer than 15 minutes. This frequency has been sufficient for the real-time data requirements of our app.
However, after adapting our app to watchOS 26, we noticed that HKObserverQuery triggers much less frequently, with longer and very inconsistent intervals. This issue has had a major impact on our product: data collection for essential features is unreliable, resulting in a greatly diminished user experience on watchOS 26 and making the app essentially useless from the user’s perspective.
Observed Behavior:
HKObserverQuery and BackgroundDelivery are extremely unstable, with trigger intervals frequently exceeding 15 minutes, and sometimes even 20 minutes.
When the user is sedentary, intervals become even longer; there are cases where no heart rate or active energy updates are delivered for 30 minutes, or even over 1 hour.
Request for Support and Guidance:
Have there been any changes to the HKObserverQuery background delivery mechanism on watchOS 26, specifically for Heart Rate and Active Energy data?
If these changes are intentional system optimizations, could you provide guidance or recommended practices to ensure our app can reliably retrieve updates and maintain a smooth experience for users?
Thank you for your support.
Hello,
I’m developing a HealthKit-based fitness app in React Native that observes step count changes and uploads the latest totals to a remote server.
I’m currently using HKObserverQuery with background delivery enabled (enableBackgroundDelivery(for:frequency:.immediate)), and the behavior works correctly while the app is running in the background or foreground.
Whenever new step data is written to HealthKit, the app wakes up, reads the latest data, and sends it to my HTTPS endpoint using URLSession.shared.dataTask inside the observer callback.
However, I’ve noticed the following issue:
1. If the user swipes up (force-quits) the app from the app switcher, the observer queries stop firing entirely.
2. In this state, even though HealthKit continues collecting step data from the device or Apple Watch, my app no longer receives those background deliveries until the user opens the app again.
What I would like to achieve is:
When the app is terminated (swiped up), and there are new step count updates in HealthKit, my app should still be able to receive those updates or be relaunched to handle them — similar to how some health companion apps continue syncing data and sending notifications even after being force-quit.
So I have a few questions:
Is this limitation expected — i.e., does iOS intentionally block HKObserverQuery background deliveries after a user force-quits the app?
2. Are there any special entitlements, background modes, or Apple-approved mechanisms that allow a health or medical app to continue receiving HealthKit changes even after a force-quit?
3. If not, what is the recommended architecture for apps that need to process HealthKit data continuously and send it to a backend server? For example, should such apps rely on server-side push notifications or CloudKit sync once the user reopens the app?
My current goal is to ensure step count changes are uploaded reliably even if the app is killed, but I want to stay within the system’s supported behaviors and privacy constraints.
Any clarification or guidance from Apple engineers or others who have implemented continuous HealthKit sync (like companion or medical apps) would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you.
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Health & Fitness
Tags:
Health and Fitness
HealthKit
Background Tasks
Hi everyone,
I’m building a health app with React Native using Expo Dev Client on a real iPhone. I need to read Apple Health (HealthKit) data, but the authorization sheet never appears—so the app never gets permissions and all queries return nothing.
What I’ve already done
Enabled HealthKit capability for the iOS target.
Added NSHealthShareUsageDescription and NSHealthUpdateUsageDescription to Info.plist.
Using a custom dev build (not Expo Go).
Tested fresh installs (deleted the app), rebooted device, and checked Settings → Privacy & Security → Health/Motion & Fitness.
Tried both packages: react-native-health and @kingstinct/react-native-healthkit. Same behavior: no permission dialog at first use.
Ask
Is there a known reason why the HealthKit permission sheet would not show on modern iOS when called from a React Native bridge (with Expo Dev Client)? Are there any extra entitlements, signing, or config-plugin steps required beyond HealthKit capability + Info.plist?
If you’re successfully fetching Apple Health data from React Native on recent iOS, could you share the exact steps that made the permission sheet appear and data flow (Expo config/plugin used, Xcode capability setup, profile/team settings, build type, bundle ID nuances, any Health app reset steps, etc.)? This would help me and others hitting the same “authorized call but no prompt/no data” issue. Thank you!
I am working on a cycling fitness app and I want to read the cycling power recorded using my Garmin edge from the Garmin Connect App. Currently the data is not transferred to the Health/Fitness Apps. Ideally it would be good to be able to query the power samples similar to the heart rate samples, but even the average power would suffice, as I could then calculate the Kilojoules.
Ever since upgrading to OS 26.1, I've noticed that HealthKit anchored object queries seem to be much slower-updating than normal. I was curious if Apple stated anything explicitly changed on this front? I use anchored object queries to update some of the workout metrics that HKLiveWorkoutBuilder doesn't report (like stepCount).
I am developing a running training app that coaches can use to create interval workout plans.
I can use HKWorkout to get information about Splits similar to that in Fitness app, but I can't get information about Intervals.
My idea is to show interval details when users view their completed custom interval workout plans.
Can I use Healthkit (or another feasible method) to get the actual distance or time of exercise in intervals workout ?
(I know the workoutPlan property, but it doesn't reflect the segments of a real interval training workout.)
Any insights or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance!
Topic:
App & System Services
SubTopic:
Health & Fitness
Tags:
Health and Fitness
HealthKit
WorkoutKit
Good afternoon,
I am working on a workout tracking app. So far everything is working as expected. However, I note that when my workout saves and is visible within the Fitness App, the workout duration is displayed rather than the kCal burned.
What changes are required to be made in order for this to display the kCal in the list of workouts in Fitness rather than duration?
For reference https://developer.apple.com/videos/play/wwdc2021/10009 this was my reference source for workout functionality.
I'm dealing with a strange bug where I am requesting read access for 'appleExerciseTime' and 'activitySummaryType', and despite enabling both in the permission sheet, they are being set to 'sharingDenied'.
I'm writing a Swift Test for making sure permissions are being granted.
@Test
func PermissionsGranted() {
try await self.manager.getPermissions()
for type in await manager.allHealthTypes {
let status = await manager.healthStore.authorizationStatus(for: type)
#expect(status == .sharingAuthorized, "\(type) authorization status is \(status)")
}
}
let healthTypesToShare: Set<HKSampleType> = [
HKQuantityType(.bodyMass),
HKQuantityType(.bodyFatPercentage),
HKQuantityType(.leanBodyMass),
HKQuantityType(.activeEnergyBurned),
HKQuantityType(.basalEnergyBurned),
HKObjectType.workoutType()
]
let allHealthTypes: Set<HKObjectType> = [
HKQuantityType(.bodyMass),
HKQuantityType(.bodyFatPercentage),
HKQuantityType(.leanBodyMass),
HKQuantityType(.activeEnergyBurned),
HKQuantityType(.basalEnergyBurned),
HKQuantityType(.appleExerciseTime),
HKObjectType.activitySummaryType()
]
let healthStore = HKHealthStore()
func getPermissions() async throws {
try await healthStore.requestAuthorization(toShare: self.healthTypesToShare, read: self.allHealthTypes)
}
After 'getPermissions' runs, the permission sheet shows up on the Simulator, and I accept all. I've double checked that the failing permissions show up on the sheet and are enabled. Then the test fails with:
Expectation failed: (status → HKAuthorizationStatus(rawValue: 1)) == (.sharingAuthorized → HKAuthorizationStatus(rawValue: 2)) HKActivitySummaryTypeIdentifier authorization status is HKAuthorizationStatus(rawValue: 1)
Expectation failed: (status → HKAuthorizationStatus(rawValue: 1)) == (.sharingAuthorized → HKAuthorizationStatus(rawValue: 2)) HKActivitySummaryTypeIdentifier authorization status is HKAuthorizationStatus(rawValue: 1)
With the rawValue of '1' being 'sharingDenied'. All other permissions are granted. Is there a workaround here, or something I'm potentially doing wrong?
Is there documentation on how to read workout effort scores from a HealthKit workout? I'm interested in reading workoutEffortScore and estimatedWorkoutEffortScore. I have not been successful trying to read them using the same method that I do other workout HKQuantityTypes (heartRate, stepCount, etc). I'm using Swift and I do have authorization for those types requested and granted.
I have found documentation on setting these values (https://developer.apple.com/forums/thread/763539) but not reading them.
Thank You
In my WatchOS app I've written the following code to check if my app has access to the user's health data:
func isHealthKitAuthorized() -> Bool {
let typesToRead: [HKObjectType] = [
HKObjectType.quantityType(forIdentifier: .heartRate)!,
HKObjectType.quantityType(forIdentifier: .activeEnergyBurned)!,
HKObjectType.quantityType(forIdentifier: .appleMoveTime)!,
HKObjectType.quantityType(forIdentifier: .appleExerciseTime)!,
HKObjectType.workoutType()
]
let typesToShare: Set<HKSampleType> = [
HKObjectType.workoutType(),
HKObjectType.quantityType(forIdentifier: .activeEnergyBurned)!,
HKObjectType.quantityType(forIdentifier: .heartRate)!
]
var isAuthorized = true
for type in typesToRead {
let status = healthStore.authorizationStatus(for: type)
if status != .sharingAuthorized {
print("Access denied to: \(type.identifier)")
isAuthorized = false
}
}
for type in typesToShare {
let status = healthStore.authorizationStatus(for: type)
if status != .sharingAuthorized {
print("Access denied to: \(type.identifier)")
isAuthorized = false
}
}
return isAuthorized
}
However for the appleMoveTime and appleExerciseTime types their status is returning as 'sharingDenied' (checked by printing the status' rawValue) even though they are authorized on the Watch's settings. This happened both on the simulator and on the Watch itself. Am I doing something wrong?