A diabetes expert, who runs a YouTube channel dedicated to managing blood sugar levels, has revealed the profound effect a simple dietary change can have on his body.

With a family history of type 2 diabetes, Justin Richard is committed to preventing the disease and uses a continuous glucose monitor on his upper right arm. 

"It shows exactly what every type of food does to my blood sugar and it's on 24-7," he explained in a video.

Over the past 18 months, he has shared numerous videos discussing how different foods impact his health. In his latest clip, Justin explored the effect of swapping regular rice for cauliflower rice in his diet.

"Let's see what cauliflower rice does to my blood sugar," he began. "This is six ounces [170g] - a serving that has only six grams of carbohydrates and two grams of protein. So, basically it's just chopped up cauliflower into rice-sized pieces and it's really high in fibre."

After consuming the entire bowl, Justin waited a few hours before reviewing the data from his monitor. "No elevation in my blood sugar - look at that nice even line across," he observed, sharing a screenshot of a chart from the monitor. "There's no surprise here."

A striking comparison was made by Justin, who found that while cauliflower rice allowed his blood sugar level to stay within the optimal range of around 80mg/dL over a two-hour period, regular rice led to a significant spike, reaching up to 140mg/dL.

Justin concluded: "For me, cauliflower rice is a great choice - I might add that it doesn't taste as great as regular rice, but halfway through eating it I did add some soy sauce, which made a tremendous difference. Remember that individual results will vary, especially if you have diabetes."

What do health experts say about blood sugar?

The NHS advises online: "The target range for blood glucose is 4 to 7mmol/l. If the blood glucose falls below this, hypo symptoms usually occur. However, over 8mmol/l, there may not be any symptoms at all. Changes in the body do occur, though - high blood glucose results are just as serious as low ones, and it is probably even more important to take high results seriously."

Meanwhile, Diabetes.co.uk informs: "For the majority of healthy individuals, normal blood sugar levels are as follows:

• Between 4.0 to 5.4 mmol/L (72 to 99 mg/dL) when fasting
• Up to 7.8 mmol/L (140 mg/dL) 2 hours after eating

For people with diabetes, blood sugar level targets are as follows:

• Before meals : 4 to 7 mmol/L for people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes
• After meals : under 9 mmol/L for people with type 1 diabetes and under 8.5mmol/L for people with type 2 diabetes