Washington, Dec 16 : Former Playmate Pamela Anderson has lavished praised on Hugh Hefner, claiming he’s a supporter of women.

The stunner, who first posed for Playboy at the age of 22, said she never felt exploited by the magazine''s founder Hefner.

She said: "It felt like a real family environment. Once I got to know Hugh Hefner I saw that he was, in fact, a real supporter of women. Playboy wasn''t exploitative at all and it was my decision."

The 44-year-old star also revealed that it has her mom who encouraged her to bare all, reports Contactmusic.

She explained to the Daily Star newspaper: "My mom was supportive - she told me to go for it. I was always a tomboy and she thought it would be good to look back on one day." (ANI)