She was recently named the ‘Sexiest Power Woman of All Time’ by a US lifestyle magazine, but Nadja Atwal is happiest being a wife and mum.
The German born former model, who runs her own celebrity PR firm and production house, is mother to 1 year old Alexus and wife to a cancer researcher, Professor Mickey Atwal.
“Yes, I am happiest being a wife and mother, but that doesn’t mean I can’t be glamorous too.
“No matter if married or not, mother or not, most women want to feel good about the way they look, and a healthy dose of vanity is a good thing.
“Plus after pregnancy you really feel like celebrating your body when it remotely looks like how you remembered it,” she says.
Nadja believes that women are being “driven crazy” by being told what they should do.
“’You should breastfeed for six months, you must keep the baby indoors’ … we’re women, not robots.”
Instead, she believes new mums should work it out for themselves and the baby.
“I worked out the ‘must dos’ that were right for my son with my paediatrician and he has been perfectly healthy, happy and low fuss in his first year.
“I urge women not to let guilt rule them, but common sense.”
However, the one thing Nadja is adamant about is vaccination.
“I am married to a scientist. Bottom line? Don’t listen to some celebrity mum on TV who says you shouldn’t vaccinate your child because they got autism or something else. When it comes to serious issues like this, follow the facts and the evidence, not pop theory.”
Since being awarded the ‘Sexiest Power Woman’ tag, Nadja has decided to put her name to a cause she feels passionately about – the ethical treatment of animals.
She learned about the issues when she previously developed and produced campaigns for the organisation People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).
Nadja says she used to visit zoos until she was confronted with what she calls "devastating facts."
According to PETA, the living conditions at zoos are “often dismal” and deprive animals of the freedom to move and to be gregarious.
"I travel across the world, am the captain of my time, can live out my dreams and needs, live a free life. The life of animals in zoos is unnatural and imposed on them - there is no justification for it,” says Atwal.