Janet Jackson was forced to diet from the age of 11

The 44-year-old singer ' who first performed on stage at the age of seven ' admitted she has been battling issues with her weight since she was "very little" when producers on the set of sitcom 'Good Times' told her she needed to be slimmer.

She explained: "It's been a tough road, a tough battle since I was very little and not feeling worthy. There were self-esteem issues, issues dealing with food stemming from when I was very, very young. Not feeling I was good enough as I was.

"I was told at a very young age on the show 'Good Times' that I needed to go on a diet. I was only, what, 11, 12? And I look back on those shows and I wasn't a heavy kid. Some people can just brush it right off but others, they really internalise it. And that was me."

The 'Together Again' hitmaker ' whose weight has fluctuated over the years - also believes she may be addicted to food as she has always been an "emotional eater".

Janet added to CNN's 'Piers Morgan Tonight' show: "I'm not in denial in any way. I've never had someone say to me you're addicted to food and maybe that's what it is for me. I've never had anyone say that to me, but the way that I feel about it. It still is an issue for me.

"I was an emotional eater. I still am. I've learned how to handle certain issues and not to run to that for comfort. It's just not about, 'OK, how do you stop the eating?' It's deeper than that. There are issues behind that. You have to figure out what's creating it first in order to figure out how to stop it."