Sarah Jessica Parker told Kristin Davis she had body dysmorphia.

Kristin - who played Charlotte York on Sex and the City and And Just Like That - struggled with body image issues in the early 2000s because fans she met were always surprised she wasn't "fat", and even though she knew they "didn't mean anything bad", she couldn't help but be affected by the comments, much to the concern of her co-stars.

Speaking on her Are You a Charlotte? podcast, the 60-year-old star said: "There was a good number of years when we were on the old school, in your televisions, HBO proper, and when people would see me on the street here or in New York, they would say, 'Oh, but you're not fat.'

"I know they know they didn't mean anything bad. They mean it as a compliment. But it's because I'm standing next to Sarah Jessica."

"There were times when Sarah Jessica would be like, 'You have body dysmorphia.' I'd be like, 'I don't think I do,' because the world is literally telling me daily that I am pear-shaped.

"So much to the point where you can't think straight."

And Kristin admitted she was always on a "crazy diet", which even led to her fainting on one occasion.

She added: "But then, you also have disordered eating. You're starving yourself. I remember fainting in a parking lot one time, because I was on some crazy diet."

Kristin got her big break in 1995 playing Brooke Armstrong on Melrose Place and earlier this year, she recalled the pressure she was under because of the expectation for female cast members to be "super skinny".

The actress hired a running coach and would take part in back-to-back 90-minute spin classes, but was barely eating and despite her efforts, she was still ordered not to "gain any weight" by producers after being told they had a problem with her size by co-star Thomas Calabro.

Recalling a conversation with the actor in her make-up trailer, she told People magazine: "He's like, 'Kristin, I'm so happy to see you here I just wanna tell you, you know, I think you look great,' and I'm like, 'Oh, thank you. What are you talking about? What do you mean?' He said, 'Oh, I know that the producers are really stressed, you know, but I just think it's amazing that we have a woman who has curves.' "

When Kristen expressed her confusion, she claimed Thomas replied: "I just think they shouldn't, you know, put too much pressure on you.' "

She added: "And I'm like, 'What?'"

"I go to the line producer and I'm like, 'Thomas Calabro just told me that you guys are stressing about my weight. Did someone say something? Did Mr. [Aaron] Spelling say something?' And he was like, 'We think you look beautiful,' and I was like, 'Yeah, and?' He goes, 'Just don't gain any weight.'

"It was normal for a long time. You could look at it either way. But I mean, there was a lot of stress. If you had hips, it was a situation."