Cameron Diaz loves getting older.

The 38-year-old beauty feels much more "fulfilled" in her life now than she did in her twenties and can't wait to pass the milestone birthday of 40.

She said: "I love getting older. In my twenties, I wanted to be in my thirties. Now I'm not afraid of my forties. The other day this kid of 22 asked if I was afraid of 40. I was like: 'Don't be afraid, son!'

"Life is so much better as you get older. You're liberated from so many things. I feel stronger, more capable, more fulfilled than when I was 29, 30, 35."

The 'Bad Teacher' star - whose romance with Alex 'A-Rod' Rodriguez has been the subject of speculation it is in trouble - is happy to have never married because it makes ending a relationship much easier.

She explained in an interview with Metro newspaper: "I think every relationship is like a marriage. You commit yourself, your lives are joined. I've been married four or five times but thank God you don't have to get divorced. You say: 'Okay cool, see you later. I've got my house. Have you got my golf clubs?' "