Brands figured it out quite a while ago-- people LOVE Pumpkin Spice. Johns Hopkins University researchers say it’s not so much the taste of pumpkin spice that we love so much as the smell and it’s associations. Researcher Jason Fischer says, “There’s a kind of special access to the memory system in the brain that odor perception has.” Even just reading the phrase “pumpkin spice” can bring forth the scents and memories of fall, which are further enforced when the leaves change colors and other physical signs of fall are present around us. McCormick & Company first released their pumpkin pie spice blend back in 1934, and two years ago it was the company’s fourth best-selling retail spice during fall ! The researchers said that there’s another factor at play called “the familiarity effect,” which kind of means “the more you’ve been exposed to something, the more it ingrains itself in your preferences.” Fisher adds, “So simply by experiencing pumpkin spice every year, over and over again… it takes on that sense of familiarity” and when you add in all the other positive associations with fall, it “can really cause us to find some sort of nostalgic comfort in it.” I say "Bring on the Pumpkin Spice EVERYTHING !!
(Source-Yahoo)
Photo: Getty Images