Actress Cameron Diaz, who is dating rocker Benji Madden, says life is "easier" without children.

Diaz says deciding not to have a family was not "easy" but was never "drawn" to being a mother, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

"It's so much more work to have children. To have lives besides your own that you are responsible for, I didn't take that on. That did make things easier for me. A baby, that's all day, every day for eighteen years. Not having a baby might really make things easier, but that doesn't make it an easy decision," she said.

"I like protecting people, but I was never drawn to being a mother. I have it much easier than any of them. That's just what it is. Doesn't mean life isn't sometimes hard.

"I'm just what I am. I work on what I am. Right now, I think, things are good for me. I've done a lot. And I don't care anymore," added the 41-year-old.