Victoria Justice Talks About Her Fight With an Autoimmune Disease

Updated on Oct 15, 2015 at 10:30 AM

Victoria Justice is Health magazine's November 2015 hot cover star, and the 22-year-old singer and actress kept it real in her interview, which hits newsstands on Oct. 16. The fit Puerto-Rican-American beauty, wearing an army green monokini and jean jacket combo on the cover, showed off her toned abs and went in depth about her favorite workouts, her fight with Hashimoto's disease (an autoimmune disorder), her relationship with her fans, and what keeps her grounded. Keep scrolling to read Victoria's quotes and see pictures from her upcoming spread, then check out all the fun she had at New York Fashion Week.

On social media and her fans: "At times it can be a bit overwhelming . . . But at the end of the day, it's just a great way to stay connected to the people who've supported me since the beginning. They've kind of grown up with me, and I know a lot of them by name and have relationships with a lot of these people. The best part is being able to share bits of my personality so they can see who I really am."
On authenticity: ". . . What you see is what you get with me. I'm not pretending to be a different person on social media. I do it myself. I am who I am. I feel like if I was a diva or if I were doing all these crazy things on the side, people would find out. There's not much you can hide nowadays."
On what keeps her grounded: "I try to meditate every day. It's important to take that time, even if it's just 10 minutes, to block everything out and get grounded again. And I love to lie on my hammock and read things that are inspirational and motivational, whether it's a self-help book or an autobiography."
On having Hashimoto's: "A few years ago, I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's, which is a thyroid autoimmune disorder. This Korean acupuncturist put me on a super-strict diet, where I was a pescatarian. I also couldn't eat any sugar, wheat or dairy. They had put me on this thyroid medication, and I think the levels were too high for me because it caused my skin to break out."