Mishaal Rahman / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Health Connect gives Android users a tool to store their health and fitness data in a centralized repository.
- In addition to regular health metrics, Health Connect is getting ready to keep track of nicotine and alcohol consumption.
- Nicotine reporting will support different consumption methods, like cigarettes and vaping.
Let’s be honest: Android Health Connect needs work. The system has the best of intentions, offering a tool for organizing and making sense of all the different kinds of health and exercise data we collect from the various wearables and fitness trackers we use. But even if we’re a bit frustrated by its current implementation, the basic idea is a good one, and we’d love to see Health Connect evolve to meet our needs. One way we can hope to see it grow is by supporting additional data types, and today we’re checking out work on a couple additions that might sound a little counter-intuitive.
Google supports dozens of data types in Health Connect — everything from blood pressure, to step count, to how well you’re staying hydrated. When it comes to hydration, though, we imagine Google was thinking more along the lines of “glasses of nice, cool water” than where we’re about to go with this.
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Looking through Google’s latest Health Connect beta for Android, we’ve uncovered evidence of the app preparing to add two new data types that are decidedly not good for your health:
Code
<string name="nicotine_intake_lowercase_label">nicotine intake</string>
<string name="nicotine_intake_read_content_description">Read nicotine intake</string>
<string name="nicotine_intake_title">%1$s • %2$s</string>
<string name="nicotine_intake_title_long">%1$s • %2$s</string>
<string name="nicotine_intake_type_cigarette">{quantity, plural, =1 {{quantity} cigarette} other {{quantity} cigarettes}}</string>
<string name="nicotine_intake_type_unknown">{quantity, number} unknown</string>
<string name="nicotine_intake_type_vape">{quantity, plural, =1 {{quantity} vape puff} other {{quantity} vape puffs}}</string>
<string name="nicotine_intake_uppercase_label">Nicotine intake</string>
<string name="nicotine_intake_write_content_description">Write nicotine intake</string>⚠️ An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release.
Even in this early form, this system for reporting nicotine usage looks reasonably robust, with distinct data types for cigarette and vape consumption. Considering the rising popularity of smokeless nicotine pouches, it might be nice to have even further options available beyond that sprawling “unknown” data type, but it’s a start.
If we just hit cigarettes, and we already told you that Health Connect was getting support for two vices, we bet you can see where this is going next:
Code
<string name="alcohol_consumption_read_content_description">Read alcohol consumption</string>
<string name="alcohol_consumption_write_content_description">Write alcohol consumption</string>That feels even more bare-bones than nicotine tracking, but it sure looks like alcohol tracking is on its way to Health Connect, too. Users will presumably submit this data to Android’s hub through third-party smoking cessation or drink-tracking apps, and having a central place to view that data may help people better set and work towards goals of getting those numbers down.
Right now we’re not sure just when Google might be thinking about formally introducing support for this additional Health Connect data. We’ll keep looking at new beta releases in the hopes of spotting any further changes, and update you on any signs of progress.
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