Louise Redknapp has opened up about her struggles with body image and self-confidence that have plagued her throughout her career. The 50 year old star, who was once voted one of the world's sexiest women, revealed how her insecurities about her appearance held her back.

Redknapp confessed that she grappled with skin conditions and anxiety about being unexpectedly photographed, which prevented her from fully enjoying life and living in the moment. Her confidence took a significant hit after becoming a mother and experiencing a flare-up of her skin issues.

The former Eternal band member shared: “There's been lots of times in life that maybe being worried about how I looked has held me back from really living in the moment and enjoying things.

“Every moment being on the beach, worrying that somebody might take a picture of you in an unflattering angle – I spent most of my holidays lying flat in the hope that no one would spot me.”

These feelings were not helped by struggles with pigmentation in her skin tone, which was at its worst in her twenties, which she said caused her confidence to plummet. She recounted a dermatologist telling her that the pigmentation she experienced after having her first child was among the worst they had seen in a long time.

She recounted: "I said that I looked like I had the world map on my face," and shared, “It really affected my confidence, because on one hand, I was so happy having this gorgeous baby, and on the other hand, I didn't know what I was going to do with my face.”

Louise has opened up about her struggles after teaming up with fellow stars for the 'I AM... Thiamidol' campaign, which includes four candid interviews where each celebrity discusses their journey towards skin confidence.

Love Island star Dani Dyer, relationship expert and co-host of Married At First Sight Paul C Brunson, and author Louise Pentland joined her for a live billboard stunt organised by skincare brand Beiersdorf, the company behind NIVEA and Eucerin.

Despite her previous insecurities, Louise is optimistic that today's popstars will be able to express more vulnerability than she could during her chart-topping days in the 1990s and early 2000s.

She commented: “I think I come from an era in music where everything was so sort of perfect and you never really got to show your true self at all, because every time you went out and you did anything, there was hair, there was makeup, there was the whole kind of showbiz element behind it.

“I feel as time's gone on, especially in today's world, we're so open about talking about mental health, anxiety, actually, talking about yourself, which shows a real of strength and character.”

Even on a bad skin day, she now has ways of trying to stay positive. She added: “I think we've got to accept we're not always going to stay really positive but remember that not everybody's seeing what you're seeing.

“The things that we think are terrible - blemishes on our face, pigment on our face - people might notice it, but it's not the first thing they judge you on, and if it is, you don't want to know them anyway.

“Trying to keep a positive mental attitude is really tough but just remember that everybody's fighting their own battles and believe you me, whatever you're fighting at that time will not beat the forefront of their mind.”

Find out more about the I AM.. Thiamidol campaign by visiting @nivea_uk on Instagram.