Eve Plumb is grateful to her parents for protecting her from the turbulent fate child stars often face.
The Little Women actress was only eight years old when she began acting in commercials, and 10 when she was cast as Brady middle child Jan Brady in The Brady Bunch.
The beloved American sitcom ran from 1969 to 1974, and while some of her co-stars went on to struggle with addiction and other health woes in the years that followed, the painter was able to stay grounded thanks to her parents' influence.
© Getty ImagesSpeaking with Fox News Digital, Eve, who just released the book Happiness Included: Jan Brady and Beyond, detailed how she stayed out of trouble growing up as a star, noting that "the power to say no is very valuable as an actor."
"And as a person, we always talk about setting boundaries. And my parents always made sure that I had time off and that I did the right things. You don't have to say yes to everything. And I am still that way today," she added.
"I would hope for every child actor that they have good protective parents, like mine, who saved their money and kept them away from anything that seemed suspicious," she further shared.
© Getty ImagesEve, 68, also warned child stars and aspiring actors: "Just know that once you're famous you can't go back. So be careful if you really want to choose it."
Still, while she luckily avoided more serious struggles like those of her co-stars, that's not to say the transition out of child stardom was easy. "It took me a long time to realize I wasn't a cute kid anymore," she said. "It probably happened in my late 20s, when I finally stopped getting everything I auditioned for. I had such confidence going along and moving through all of my roles, that it took a while for me to experience the disappointment of being an actor in Hollywood."
Last month, Eve's co-star Mike Lookinland, who starred as youngest brother Bobby Brady, spoke with his co-star Christopher Knight, who played older brother Peter Brady, about the post-Brady years he went "off the rails." Mike confessed that transition from going to child star to a regular young adult wasn't an easy one for him, as he "lived my childhood in my 20s because I couldn't when I was a child."
© Getty Images"In my twenties, I had a car and money and freedom," he noted, adding: "I'm just thankful that not every man, woman, and child had a high-def camera in their pocket when I was 25, like they do now, because it would have ruined my life."
© Getty ImagesMike, 65, began acting when he was seven years old, and just two years later was cast in The Brady Bunch. After the show ended in 1974, he featured in many of its spin-offs, but ultimately largely left the spotlight, graduating from high school in 1978 and going on to attend the University of Utah, though he ultimately dropped out to pursue a career as a production assistant and camera operator.
Mike was arrested for a DUI in November 1997, and completed a court-ordered rehabilitation service for the incident the following year. He has been sober ever since.
