Katie Melua believes her "addiction" to life as a pop star lead to her nervous breakdown.

The Closest Thing to Crazy singer was forced to postpone her 2010 tour and stopped working for a few months after the breakdown.

The 27-year-old has opened up about the incident saying she was working so hard that her "body just wouldn't function anymore".

"I didn't see any sign of overdoing things," she told German newspaper Die Zeit.

"The job of a pop star can be very addictive, especially when you're young: first of all it's very exciting, and secondly you can get paid incredibly well, if you're lucky. You don't think about holidays at that point, so you work till destruction."

The starlet, who came into the pop business at age 18, said she "didn't realise anything at that time" as the concept of overworking "sounded strange".

She added her parents were very worried about her for while after she was hospitalised for six weeks.

"My parents were shocked. I had to calm them down for a long time," she said.

While being a pop star is hard work, Katie said the toughest part about the music industry is "the loneliness". She felt very alone while she was touring.

"Sure, I do sleep in luxury hotels most of the time - but always alone," she said.

"An empty suite is pointless. And you have this overly enacted communication: as a public figure you always have contact with someone - but you never know if they really like you or just think you are important. Too much kindness encourages self-doubt and this ends in insecurity."

However, she won't be quitting her career any time soon as she wants to ensure she can always look after her family. Katie has been supporting her loved ones since they came from Georgia to England.

"Georgia is a very poor country, many of my relatives still live there. They all count on me. I have to keep on going for a long time," she said.

Her fifth studio album Secret Symphony is out now.