Spears: Bloating not due to pregnancy

LOS ANGELES, May 17 (UPI) -- U.S. pop singer Britney Spears says she is not pregnant for a third time despite recent photographs showing her with a bloated stomach.

The "Toxic" singer says a new medication she is taking was responsible for her recent weight gain and not a third pregnancy, the Daily Mail reported Saturday.

"I am not pregnant -- it is just my medication that makes me bloated," Spears said of recent pregnancy rumors.

A source close to the "Baby One More Time" star told the British newspaper Spears has struggled with her weight since the birth of her 20-month-old son Jayden James.

Meanwhile, a friend of Spears said she is spending some time with actor Mel Gibson and his wife in Central America to help her gain some perspective in her life.

"Mel and his wife Robyn clearly saw a woman in crisis and wanted to extend themselves in any way possible," the unidentified friend told the Daily Mail.

"There are no expectations, there is no agenda. It's simply an act of human kindness, one neighbor reaching out to another."