This is not the first in Singapore that offers a health programme. National Steps Challenge has ran for 5 seasons already but there’s really nothing that is like LumiHealth. It was announced that the Singapore government has worked with Apple for 2 years for this.
Coupled with the advent of the new Apple watches and the price reduction of the third series, LumiHealth is definitely the most attention-grabbing one amongst all of the health programmes. So, what exactly is Lumihealth?
Contents
- 1 What is LumiHealth?
- 2 How much can you earn on LumiHealth?
- 3 Where can you spend HPB eVouchers?
- 4 How to claim and use HPB eVouchers?
- 5 Who is eligible to participate in LumiHealth?
- 6 Is LumiHealth free?
- 7 Is LumiHealth only for Apple Watch?
- 8 How do I put LumiHealth on my Apple Watch?
- 9 Is LumiHealth available for Android devices?
- 10 How do I sign up for LumiHealth?
- 11 How do I earn eVouchers?
- 12 Can I type in manual entries for LumiHealth?
- 13 Is LumiHealth safe?
- 14 Is LumiHealth worth it?
What is LumiHealth?
LumiHealth is a health programme designed by Singapore’s Health Promotion Board (HPB) designed by Singapore, in partnership with Apple. Using the data collected from surveys and the Apple Watch, technology and behavioural insights would be obtained. This would result in a customised programme that leverages the hardware and software of the Apple watch.
So what’s the main aim of Lumihealth? It is to motivate Singaporeans to live more healthily and reward them with HPB eVouchers.
How much can you earn on LumiHealth?
The maximum amount of rewards that you are able to earn with LumiHealth over 2 years is $380 in eVouchers. You will receive points for completing certain milestones in LumiHealth, and these points can be converted to HPB eVouchers.
You will need to have at least 1,500 coins to redeem a HPB eVoucher.
Where can you spend HPB eVouchers?
There are currently over 40 merchants that accept the HPB eVouchers. This includes supermarkets and convenience stores like Cold Storage, Giant and FairPrice, pharmacies like Guardian and Unity, F&B establishments like Koi and Yole and even selected shopping malls like Hillion and Sembawang Shopping Centre (SSC).
I really like that the places that you can use your HPB eVouchers are rather diverse. This means that you can use them for not only everyday items like groceries but also other things, such as:
- Cosmetics
- Apparel
How to claim and use HPB eVouchers?
Here are the steps you’ll need to claim your HPB eVouchers:
Claiming vouchers is really easy. You just have to click the coin button when you first log into the app. “Redeem coins” would bring you to the page where you can exchange for $5 and $10 vouchers, which would correspond to 1,500 and 3,000 coins.
To use the eVouchers, you just have to click the Wallet icon and select the voucher that you wish to use. Only when you are in front of the cashier, you should activate it and let the cashier to scan it. The cashier I was talking to was not very sure about this eVouchers so you might want to clarify with the cashier before activating the voucher. Otherwise, the entire process is really simple and fuss-free.
Who is eligible to participate in LumiHealth?
Singapore residents who have a SingPass account and are 17 years or older will be eligible to participate in LumiHealth.
Is LumiHealth free?
LumiHealth is free to download from the Apple App Store. There are no costs involved in downloading or signing up for the LumiHealth program.
As such, LumiHealth is a great way for you to kickstart healthy living habits!
Is LumiHealth only for Apple Watch?
To participate in LumiHealth, you will need an iPhone which runs iOS 13.2 or later, as well as an Apple Watch (3rd series onwards).
If you do not have an Apple Watch, you will not be able to participate in LumiHealth!
Alternatively, you still can earn Healthpoints to redeem HPB eVouchers via the National Steps Challenge.
How do I put LumiHealth on my Apple Watch?
You are not required to install a LumiHealth app on your Apple Watch. The LumiHealth app can be on your iPhone, and the data from your Apple Watch will sync to this app.
Is LumiHealth available for Android devices?
LumiHealth is only available for iOS devices, and it is not available for devices that use the Android OS. This is because LumiHealth only uses the Apple Watch, which does not sync with Android devices.
How do I sign up for LumiHealth?
You would need to own an Apple Watch (3rd series onwards) & iPhone that has the LumiHealth app from the App Store. You can only enroll in LumiHealth OR the National Steps Challenge at one time. If you wish to join LumiHealth, you will need to be unenrolled from the National Steps Challenge.
Once you have selected LumiHealth, you would be briefed on the collection and management of personal data including demographic data activity, health and app usage data. Demographic data would be collected from MyInfo from SingPass as seen above. This would not be shared with Apple.
The health data would be collected by your iPhone and the Apple Watch. The app usage data would be obtained basing on your engagement with the app, which will be used to customise the experience for you. The data collected and shared with HPB and Apple would be non-identifiable.
Personally, I do not object to the collection of personal data for authentication. However, with all the data leaks, I am just a bit concerned. My panic level did rise a bit when I received the SMS that Evidation Health would be receiving my data. Turns out, they are the programme’s operation partner.
You can learn more about it in the FAQ here.
I am not too sure if it appeared in the sign-up process. However, I feel that perhaps we could be informed in a more obvious manner.
In addition, I encountered problems during my sign up with an error message of “Please try again. error encountered trying to access your SingPass MyInfo records. Please try again.” Trying again did not help but reinstalling did so do try that if you have the same issue. You will be ready to start, which brings us to the most important question:
How do I earn eVouchers?
To exchange for eVouchers, you would need coins. The exchange rate is 1,500 coins for $5. These coins can only be obtained by completing challenges and reaching milestones, at 5,000 points. When you earn 40,000 points, you will move onto the next level. For the first level, that would mean 3200 coins, which is approximately $10.67.
You will start earning your first and also easiest, 5,000 points by learning about the 3 main types of challenges, namely: Activity challenges, Wellness challenges and Personalised challenges, and also completing a Health survey.
The activity challenges would be the ones that would bring in the most points. Everyday, you can earn up to 300 points for daily bonuses. By closing all the rings the number of times that is specified in the week, you would get a bonus of 8000 points. This means that you can earn up to 300 x 7 + 8000 =10100 points. This is the highest possible, compared to other challenges and this meant taking more night walks in an attempt to fulfil 500kcal and 30 minutes of exercise time for me.
Pro Tip: If you want to maximise the points earned from activity challenges, you can actually do so by adjusting your goals in your Apple Watch. The lowest possible parameters would be 10 kcal of movement, 10 minutes of exercise and standing once every hour for 6 hours. I do not think that you should set goals that are way too low as it defeats the aims of doing this. However, you can adjust your goals to an appropriate one that challenges you reasonably.
Editor’s Note: This does not work as of May 13, 2021. The activity challenges now require a minimum of 30 minutes of exercise and 12 hours of standing.
Even if you change your goals to be less than this requirement, you will not be able to earn the points from the activity challenge!
As such, you will need to be really consistent when doing these challenges. Here are some tips for you to reach 30 minutes of exercise and 12 hours of standing.
Pro Tip #1: Ensure that you stand up and walk every hour by inculcating useful habits. For me, that would mean drinking a bottle of water and refilling it every hour!
Pro Tip #2: Walk more (and also remember to record more). You can include your walking time as you go for shopping trips, which adds up to the distance as well! However, you will need to ensure that you record these walks, if not it won’t count into your exercise time!
The wellness challenges would be the ones that would help to supplement your points. They do not just address physical wellness but also mental wellness. Depending on what you get, you might use the Breathe function of the Apple Watch for four days, or the Workout function for 4 days.
At first, I got a few wellness challenges in a week. However, I got challenges that take longer to complete after the first week. Regardless, I like the diversity of challenges and I am motivated by the coins. I see myself doing more HIIT to try to hit 30 minutes worth of exercises.
Personalised challenges are my favourites. They usually consist of surveys that require very little time. I only got 1 personalised challenge that is not a survey and it was easy to complete. It also helps to personalise the experience of LumiHealth.
Compared to my friend’s mom, I learnt that there are differences in the wellness challenges. I think that it has to do with the surveys here, which probably have stratified challenges for different ages, sex and activities that we declared. I do hope to see more challenges that appear to cater to me specifically.
Can I type in manual entries for LumiHealth?
LumiHealth directly synchronises your data from your Apple Watch. As such, you are unable to add manual entries into LumiHealth as they would not count towards your goals.
Is LumiHealth safe?
Physically? I would think so! I find the challenges rather reasonable in terms of intensity for the frequency.
In terms of data, I would think so too! According to LumiHealth, all of the health data is encrypted on the device, in transit, and on their servers, where it will be stored in a highly secured environment. Evidation Health, the programme operations partner, will receive the data and direct identifiers, such as your name and contact details, will be removed. Instead, a random, unique code is used to connect to your data, where they will be shared with Health Promotion Board (HPB). Apple will receive aggregated information about the programme and your coded data with Apple if you choose to share with them.
Please do note that both HPB and Apple may also share your data and coded data with third parties that provide services for the LumiHealth programme. For more information, you should refer to their Privacy Policy and Programme Participation Agreement.
Is LumiHealth worth it?
Of course! It is a good and easy way to earn vouchers!
Honestly, there’s nothing much to complain about. Stylistically, I do not love the interface and in-app experience. Don’t get me wrong, they are good but I find them a bit kiddy. I can see the appeal of it but I personally prefer a simpler and more systematic formatting. While I have no issues navigating around the app, I do think that those who are not technologically savvy may have difficulties doing so.
That’s about it though. It’s really very well-done, in my perspective. While I do hope that this is something that is not limited within the Apple ecosystem, it is hard to imagine the same kind of integration if it had been done with other devices. I really like how the Apple Watch’s activity was used as the main mechanism of the app, which ensured the seamless integration between the watch and the phone. I would encourage everyone who owns an Apple watch and an iPhone to get on this. After all, all you would need to do is to download the app and complete the challenges.
You can also check out my guide after using LumiHealth for one year to see if my view has changed.
Also, if you have decided to download LumiHealth, why not use my referral link? Both of us can get bonus points!
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