Singer and actress Miley Cyrus had just returned from performing at a concert in Chicago when she heard some startling news: Her close friend Jamie Lynn Spears had been rushed to a hospital in her hometown of Kentwood, La., on Jan. 16 and was rumored to have suffered a miscarriage. Miley, 15, who has publicly voiced her support for 16-year-old Jamie Lynn, "was desperate to talk to her pal," an insider says. "She was so worried about her."

The rumor turned out to be false — "Jamie Lynn Spears was not rushed to the hospital, nor did she suffer a miscarriage," said her rep, who also later denied any additional problems with Jamie. But even after the scare subsided, the danger to Jamie Lynn's baby still seemed all too real to friends and family members. Until she became pregnant, Jamie Lynn's image was as innocent and sweet as her character on
Nickelodeon's Zoey 101.

But nearly a year ago, a family insider told Life & Style that Jamie Lynn's mom, Lynne Spears, had become scared that her youngest daughter was following in big sis Britney's shaky footsteps. "Lynne knows Jamie Lynn's starting to smoke, and she has caught her drinking," the insider said at the time.

And even after seeing her older sister shuttle in and out of rehab and have her children taken from her, Jamie Lynn's risky behavior didn't stop. "She's been known to smoke and drink," says a pal, though her rep says Jamie Lynn currently does neither. "She's starting to remind friends of Britney," adds the pal.

Read more about Jamie Lynn's recent troubles —in the latest issue of Life & Style—on newsstands now!