Cameron Diaz reveals she 'never' washes her face: 'I literally don't care'

Cameron Diaz has opened up about turning her back on Hollywood beauty standards, revealing she now "never" washes her face.

Perfectly timed - yesterday marked International Women's Day - the 49-year-old said she's done with trying to meet typical beauty standards and rarely thinks about her appearance anymore, preferring a simpler, more natural beauty regime.

The Charlies Angels actor, who is married to Good Charlotte musician Benji Madden, 42, and has a daughter Raddix, aged two, was discussing how freeing her life is now that she is out of the limelight in an interview with RuPaul's Drag Race star Michelle Visage on her new BBC podcast Rule Breakers.

“I literally do nothing," Diaz admitted. "I like never wash my face… Twice a month if I'm lucky, I'll be like, ‘Oh, I better put this on. One time works, right?’ Like is that all I have to do? I'm just not in that place right now like where I put any energy."

She added that she has "a billion products" basically gathering dust on the shelves.

Read more: Penelope Cruz wears skintight Balenciaga catsuit made famous by Kim Kardashian

Cameron described how she previously got caught up in trying to maintain typical beauty standards.

"I am absolutely a victim to all of the societal objectifications and exploitations that women are subjected to," she said. "I have bought into all of them myself, you know, at certain times.

"It's hard not to, it's hard not to sort of look at yourself and judge yourself against other sort of markers of beauty.

She described how as an actor she would sit in front of a mirror for up to seven hours a day, which could be "toxic".

"You start to pick yourself apart," she admitted. "And you're like why am I sitting here being so mean to myself? My body is strong, my body is capable, right? Why am I going to talk down to it?"

One unexpected positive to come out of stepping away from the spotlight, is far less emphasis on the way she looks, which she has found liberating.

“I think that’s one of the biggest things of the last eight years. I’m like a wild animal, like a beast. I don’t care. Literally the last thing I think about on a daily basis... like maybe not at all during the day, is what I look like."

As a result there has been a welcome scaling back of her beauty regime. Instead, she wants to focus on "staying strong", taking care of her body as best she can.

"I do feel like 50 is different than 40," she explained. "But it doesn't have to be."

Read more: Amanda Holden shares IWD video dedicated to the women who 'lift up her life'

Diaz went on to discuss being an older mum and how she wants her energy to stay "vital" for her daughter.

"The women who have children my age are like, literally almost 20 years younger and that's an interesting place to be because I'm not that age. And that's totally okay," she said.

"But I want to feel vital like that for my child. So I want to be able to be the mum who can run around and do all the like fun stuff with her and I want my energy to stay vital.

"I don't want her to feel like she has like an old mum," she continued. "I don't want it to be about what I look like. I want it to be about how it feels to her to have a mum and for me to be her mum, not a 55-year-old mum but her mum, you know, I mean, and so that's where I'm at with ageing."

Watch: Cameron Diaz explains why she's not attracted to husband's twin

The actor has previously opened up about motherhood, describing it as “the best thing ever” in a rare video interview.

"I love being a mother. It's the best, best, best part of my life," Diaz told Diaz told Who What Wear CEO Katherine Power in a live Instagram chat.

"I'm so grateful and so happy and it's the best thing ever and I'm so lucky to do it with Benj and we're having the best time. I'm thrilled. I can't believe it.

"I'm either cooking, cleaning or taking care of my baby – and usually all at the same time."

Read more: 'Perfection doesn't exist,' says Dannii Minogue, 50, in IWD post to her younger self

She was also recently praised by fans for her "ageless beauty" after sharing a sweet selfie with fellow Charlies Angels star Drew Barrymore.

The duo received a flood of positive feedback on Instagram for "embracing their age gracefully" after sharing a natural snap together.

Barrymore shared the image of them to her grid with the caption: "Bestie hour with my bestie poo poo!!"

Though both women were wearing make-up, fans rushed to comment on the image, pointing out how refreshing it was to see two women embracing, rather than fighting against their age.

Diaz has previously discussed how she doesn't stress about looking older. In her The Body Book she points out: “A lot of us fear the idea of ageing – getting older, being less mobile, having less energy and being less of ourselves. But I look at ageing like this: getting older is a blessing and a privilege, and if you lay the foundation for a healthy life in your younger years, your older years may very well be some of the best of your life."

Watch: Benji Madden celebrates seven years of marriage in the 'happy lane' with Cameron Diaz