
Carbohydrates' health history: Where do we stand now? —
It's thumbs up today, but the news on carbs has not always been positive. Take a look at the arguments for and against carbohydrates through the centuries:

2 million B.C.: Man cannot live on meat alone —
Eating a healthy portion of carbohydrates might have been critical for our evolution into a highly intelligent species.

3,000 B.C.: Thank the gods for bread —
Bread and beer were staple foods in ancient Egypt and Greece. Pictured is a limestone statuette of an Egyptian servant pressing out the fermented barley-bread from which beer was brewed.

Early 20th century: Sliced bread is the best thing since ... ever —
American inventor Otto Rohwedder developed the first mechanic bread slicer. By the end of the 1920s, 90% of store-bought bread came sliced.

1972: Atkins says we have been dieting all wrong —
The principle of Dr. Robert Atkins' diet is that, if you deprive your body of carbs, it will start burning fat for energy.

1980s: Minimizing carbs could help manage cancer —
Studies started coming out in the 1980s that low-carb ketogenic diets could reduce the size of tumors in lab mice with a range of cancers, including prostate and brain.

1991: Carb-oholics! —
Carbohydrates are not just bad for your waistline, they can be habit-forming, too, according to "The Carbohydrate Addict's Diet" by Drs. Rachael and Richard Heller.

2012: Grains may hurt the brain —
A 2012 study gave credence to the theory that sugary foods and carbohydrates harm brain health.