Lifestyle Health Jessica Simpson Addresses 'Confusing' Focus on Her Weight: 'I Wish I Could Say for Me That It's Gotten Better' The singer and fashion mogul says her kids ask, "Why don’t they just say you look pretty, Mom?" By Cara Lynn Shultz Cara Lynn Shultz Cara Lynn Shultz is a writer-reporter at PEOPLE. Her work has previously appeared in Billboard, Forbes, and Reader's Digest. People Editorial Guidelines Updated on August 28, 2023 03:55PM EDT Jessica Simpson Says That Her Kids Have Noticed Public Focus on Her Weight. Photo: Raymond Hall/GC Jessica Simpson has endured her fair share of scrutiny about her appearance and her weight — and says that her three kids have noticed it, as well. “My kids see me being still scrutinized and it’s very confusing to them because they’re like, ‘I don’t even understand this. Why don’t they just say you look pretty, Mom? You look pretty,’” Simpson told Access Hollywood at a PetSafe Unleashed event. “I’m like, ‘Honey… I wish I could explain it,’” says Simpson, who shares Maxwell "Maxi" Drew, 11, Ace Knute, 10, and Birdie Mae, 4, with husband Eric Johnson. “I wish I could say for me that it’s gotten better, but it still remains the same.” Jessica Simpson with husband Eric Johnson and their three children. Charley Gallay/Getty for Jessica Simpson Collection Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. In July, Simpson fielded rumors that she was taking Ozempic for weight loss, causing her to comment, “Do people want me to be drinking again?” Simpson, who quit alcohol nearly 6 years ago, says that when she was drinking, “that’s when I was heavier.” Jessica Simpson Denies Using Ozempic for Weight Loss: 'It's Willpower' In the past, she's said that part of the fascination with her weight may have come from her turn as iconic sex symbol Daisy Duke in the 2005 reboot of Dukes of Hazzard. "Lynda Carter warned me on the set of Dukes of Hazzard," she told Extra last year. "She was like, 'I will always be Wonder Woman and compared to Wonder Woman, and that's what you're doing here as Daisy Duke. Just know the words 'Daisy Duke' will follow you for the rest of your career.' " Simpson has pointed to her role as Daisy Duke as part of the reason people are fascinated with her weight. Sam Emerson/Warner Bros/Kobal/Shutterstock But as Simpson tells Access Hollywood, the public fascination with her weight has turned out to be a “beautiful thing” for her fashion line, The Jessica Simpson Collection. “I have been every size. I do understand every body and every woman and their mentality and how deserving they are of fashion and style and it’s just such a natural thing for me.” “I tell my kids how you feel about yourself is how you should feel. It’s not about — you don’t dress for anybody else. You don’t try to look like anybody else. Truly, you don’t have to be any other size.” Jessica Simpson Worries About What Editing Photos Tells Her Daughters: 'What Has That Done?' Simpson adds that her oldest daughter Maxwell is the tallest in her grade. “She’s like, ‘Should I be insecure?’” “The fact that you’re asking me if you should be insecure means absolutely not," says Simpson. "Stay comfortable. You be you.” The Open Book author adds that weight “doesn’t need to be a conversation,” and says she tries to avoid talking about weight in front of her kids. “Everybody talks about, ‘Ooh, I shouldn’t eat this many calories.‘ My kids are like, ‘What’s calories?’ “I try to not complain about myself in front of them. I try to not diet,” she says. “They just see me living a healthy lifestyle. That’s why I quit drinking.” “I was like, okay they're going to pick up on everything I do. I’ve got to be a good role model. And I can do that for the world, and I gotta be it for my kids.”