This article assumes you have:
- A Tidepool Account - if you do not have a Tidepool account, you can create one for free at https://tidepool.org/signup.
- Installed the latest version of Tidepool Mobile on a compatible iOS (iPhone or iPod Touch) device. You can download Tidepool Mobile from the App Store.
- An app, such as our example app Dexcom Mobile for G5 or G6, that writes data to Apple Health.
Start with Tidepool Mobile
- Launch the Tidepool Mobile app on your iPhone.
- Log into your Tidepool account with your email address & password. This is the same account you use to login to Tidepool Web. If you have forgotten your password, you can reset it here.
- If it is the first time you have logged into Tidepool Mobile the app will walk you through the process.
- Tap on the hamburger icon (three lines) in the top left of the app
- Tap on the toggle next to Connect to Health to turn it on
- A screen will pop up asking you to select the permissions you want to give Tidepool Mobile to be able to read. Tap Turn All Categories On and then tap Allow.
- If you are not seeing the Apple Health permission screen, it probably means you had previously given Tidepool Mobile permission to Apple Health data. Check out this guide on how to verify those permissions in the Health app.
- Next, you will see the Initial Sync screen. Tap the Sync Health Data button to sync any historical diabetes data in Apple Health.
- Once it says Sync Complete tap the Continue button
- The app walkthrough will continue, showing you how to add a note. Read more about adding notes in Tidepool Mobile here
Set up your Diabetes app to write to Apple Health
The process for setting up individual diabetes apps to write diabetes data to Apple Health generally follows two different paths. The first way involves the app prompting you when you first start using the app, sometimes just after login. The same permissions screen you saw in Tidepool Mobile will be seen, but it will ask you to give that app permission to write to Apple Health. Turn on the categories you want the app to write. For Tidepool Mobile, this will most likely be Blood Glucose, Insulin Delivery, & Carbohydrates. Some apps may have one or all of those categories.
The other most common way is for the diabetes app to have the option to turn on Apple Health in their settings.
Dexcom G5 & G6 Mobile, for example, both follow the second method and have the option to turn on Apple Health in Settings.
G5 Mobile –> Settings –> Health –> Enable
G6 Mobile –> Settings –> Use Apple Health –> On
Check with the app's Support information for the app you are using to find the specific instructions for turning on Apple Health
View your Data
- Using Tidepool Mobile, you can view your data after you make a note in the app. You won’t see anything if you do not have data already uploaded for the few hours surrounding your note.
See Adding and deleting a note in Tidepool Mobile and Viewing your data in Tidepool Mobile for more info
- Using Tidepool Web on your computer with Google Chrome you can see the uploaded data at https://app.tidepool.org
See Viewing your Data - Daily View and Viewing your Data - Trends for more info
Troubleshooting
If you do not see the “Connect to Health” option in Tidepool Mobile:
- Please make sure you have completed your account registration, including setting up “data storage” by logging into your account at https://app.tidepool.org from your computer with Google Chrome.
- If you and your child each have a Tidepool account, please note that only accounts that upload data (likely your child’s account) will have the option in Tidepool Mobile to sync with Apple Health. If you’d like the ability to upload your own diabetes data, log in to your account on using Google Chrome on your computer at https://app.tidepool.org and select “Create a Data Storage Account”.
- Completely uninstall and reinstall Tidepool Mobile on your iPhone and try connecting Tidepool Mobile to Apple Health again.
Please reach out to support@tidepool.org if you have any questions or feedback on this article.