Cheryl Fernandez-Versini has been experiencing a secret family heartbreak.

The 'X Factor' judge - who has been criticised in recent months for looking 'too thin' - has reportedly been making long trips between her home in London and her hometown of Newcastle to deal with a stressful family matter.

A source told The Sun on Sunday newspaper: ''Cheryl's been going through a great deal of stress recently and has been left very upset over this matter.

''It's constantly on her mind and is definitely a contributing factor to her weight loss.

''She has chosen not to publicly address the situation but rather maintain a dignified silence and get on with things.''

The 32-year-old beauty previously cited the loss of her father-in-law for her weight loss, while she has also been hard at work on another season of 'X Factor' with Simon Cowell, Rita Ora and Nick Grimshaw.

The source added: ''She is putting on a brave face and trying to focus on work as much as she can to take her mind off things.

''Her schedule with The X Factor is manic so she is using all of her spare time to make trips back to Newcastle and spend time with her family.''

In July, Cheryl hit back at an Instagram commenter who blasted her for being 'too thin'.

Cheryl wrote: ''You have no idea what I have been through. Just losing my father in law v recently and everything that comes with that. (sic)''

Earlier this month, the singer called for body shaming to be made illegal, explaining: ''Body shaming has to stop. Something has to be done, changed, even if it's done in law.

''I am very happy and very healthy. Every woman has a different body type and handles stress and grief differently.''