Apple's Next iPhone Update Will Finally Address Its Subpar Health App

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Apple Health AppiTunes

Apple's Health app got off to a rough start. A very rough start. But some of those issues will finally be addressed in the forthcoming iPhone update, 9to5Mac reports.

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The next software update, iOS 8.2, will reportedly bring back some features in the Health app Apple had previously removed in October, such as blood glucose tracking.

It will also add some new features, like descriptions for what the heck you're actually looking at within the app. 

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For example, the blood glucose section that's coming back comes with the following description: "Glucose - also called blood sugar - is the main sugar found in the blood and the main source of energy for your body." This is good to know.

The re-instated blood glucose tracking system will include options to manually set units of measurement - and the descriptions for these data points will hopefully make using the Health app a little less intimidating.

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This doesn't mean the Health app is anything close to being truly "fixed," however. As ReadWrite's Owen Thomas aptly pointed out in October, Apple's Health app doesn't actually "do anything," since it relies on your own input, or data from other applications, to present that data in charts and graphs.

As Thomas also points out, the interface is still confusing, and "the app doesn't provide any kind of interpretation for what I'm seeing, or suggestions on what to do differently in terms of my exercise or nutrition." Adding descriptions for what we're looking at in the Health app is a good step, but it won't be a motivational tool until Apple can figure out how to translate all that data into meaningful recommendations tailored to one's unique health blueprint. 

The iOS 8.2 update will also reportedly add support for Apple's WatchKit, the development platform for its upcoming Apple Watch.