AMERICAN IDOL - KELLY CLARKSON VETOES DIETING

AMERICAN IDOL winner KELLY CLARKSON hopes her stance on remaining curvaceous will encourage more young women to adopt a healthier attitude towards their bodies.

The 21-year-old MISS INDEPENDENCE singer refuses to bow to the pressure of so many celebrities before her by putting herself on super-strict diets to achieve a stick-thin body.

She says, "SIMON (COWELL) will say stuff like, 'You're not what an American Idol looks like.' Well, I'm not. I'm normal. Anybody can put make-up on. Anybody can do cool stuff with their hair. Anybody can put a cool outfit on.

"It's not like you have to be perfect in every way, whether it be how you look or how much you weigh."

She adds, "I enjoy working out. But I don't do the whole diet thing. Who wants to die on a diet? I eat like I've always eaten. If I want a frozen DING DONG, I'm damn sure going to have one."