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."
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