The iodine–starch test was first described in 1814 by Jean-Jacques Colin and Henri-François Gaultier de Claubry,[3] and independently by Friedrich Stromeyer the same year.

[6] Karl Freudenberg et al., in 1939, building upon Hanes' helical model, proposed that the helical conformation of amylose creates a hydrophobic cavity lined with CH groups, which attracts iodine molecules and leads to a shift in iodine's absorption spectrum, explaining the characteristic blue color of the complex.

1943, who used X-ray diffraction and optical studies to provide experimental evidence for the linear arrangement of iodine molecules within the amylose helix.

[8] Research in the mid-20th century began to highlight the importance of iodide anion (as opposed to neutral molecules) in the complex formation, particularly in aqueous solutions.

Studies by Mukherjee and Bhattacharyya demonstrated in 1946 that varying potassium iodide concentrations affected the ratio of I- to I2 in the complex.

[8] However, the precise composition/structure of these chains, including the balance between molecular iodine and various iodide anions, continues to be debated and investigated, with a 2022 article suggesting that they might alternate.

[14] Although the starch-iodine test is predominantly employed in the lab, recent assessments have shown potential for clinical use, such as confirming the diagnosis of Horner's syndrome.