More than 60% of parents of 12-year-olds say their child has a smartphone; nearly 97% of kids age 13 do.

And according to new research, those phones are connecting kids to more than Instagram and TikTok. They're directly hooking them up to depression, obesity, and insufficient sleep.

A study in the journal Pediatrics evaluated the impact of smartphone acquisition on more than 10,000 12-year-olds and 13-year-olds, and saw that it is often a health risk — leading to lack of physical activity and poor nutritional habits, fueling obsessive late-night scrolling after the lights go out, and exposing them to input that makes them feel bad about themselves or worried about the future.

Why would you do anything that could contribute to those sources of ill health and unhappiness for your tween or young teen?

When your child is older (you'll have to decide when they're ready for a smartphone) make sure you:

• Set rules about when and how the phone can be used (at the dinner table, no; after lights out, no; when doing homework, no).

• Set up an app-by-app approval process.

• Check in on how they're using the phone and what they say about what they're viewing or hearing.

• Be a good role model. (Stop staring at your screen when they're around, pay attention to them, and never use it at the dinner table.)

For more information on raising happy, healthy kids, check out my book, "YOU Raising Your Child."