Christy Turlington

Christy Turlington wants to take her children to visit deprived communities in Tanzania.

The 40-year-old supermodel - who has worked with aid agency CARE International in Latin America and Product Red in Africa  - believes taking three-year-old Finn and Grace, six, to help others less fortunate will make her a better mother.

Christy - who married actor Ed Burns in 2003 - explained: "I look forward to them being old enough to come with me; I plan to take them to Tanzania when they're eight and 11. I think sharing the world with them will be my greatest contributions as their mother.

"I've told them about some of the conditions I've witnessed, but I balance that by describing the natural beauty of a place like Africa. They can identify the spots I've visited on a map, including Bangladesh."

Christy - who became inspired to start charity work after meeting struggling pregnant women in El Salvador in 2006 - already discusses her charity work with the children so they can understand why she has to travel abroad.

She added to Parents magazine: "I learned that more than half a million women around the world die giving birth each year, and nearly all the deaths are preventable.