Singer Demi Lovato applauds fellow musicians like Beyonce Knowles and Jennifer Lopez for making "realistic and achievable" figure in vogue.

The 22-year-old recently posted an image on Instagram that showed her figure over the years starting when she was 16.

She expressed how "beautiful" she feels and how happy she feels not to be forced to conform to an ideal (size zero), which is impossible to acquire.

She wrote in the Instagram caption: "It makes me sad because I wasted so many years ashamed of my body when I could've been living the happy and healthy life I live today. It truly just goes to show you that your perceptions can lie to you."

In a recent interview, Lovato explained her thinking behind her Instagram post saying a fan had created a similar image and she realised how she had truly looked and felt at 16.

She also shared her views on how the perception of beauty has changed from "extremely underweight" models and actresses to women such as Knowles and Kim Kardashian, who have revolutionised "what our generations view, and perception, of what beautiful is," reports contactmusic.com.

Lovato praised Lopez and actresses Scarlett Johansson and Sofia Vergara for having "amazing" yet "realistic and achievable" figures.