EXCLUSIVE IN THIS ISSUE: Snooki on High School — "I Was 80 Pounds"

Jersey Shore’s Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi struggled just a few short years ago with eating disorders — both anorexia and bulimia — as she tried to maintain a small size for the cheerleading squad. OK! caught up with the poufed spitfire at L.A.'s The London Hotel for an exclusive interview — only in this week's issue, on sale everywhere now!

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"It started when I was a junior in high school," Snooki explains to OK! of her troubles with dieting. "The reason I did it is because I was very self-consicous about cheerleading. There were these little freshman girls, and I was scared that these little freshman girls were going to take my spot."

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That was when Snooki, at 4-feet-9 inches, began trying drastic measures to make sure she stayed tiny.

"I just started eating salads and salads," she tells OK!. "Then I got to a point where I was just eating a cracker a day. And I was down to 80 pounds."

FOR MORE ON SNOOKI'S STRUGGLE WITH HER SELF-IMAGE AND HER PLANS FOR A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE, PICK UP THE NEW ISSUE OF OK! — ON SALE EVERYWHERE NOW!