Oreo's Fall-Favorite Cookie Will Be Hitting The Shelves Early

Love it or hate it, pumpkin spice is a quintessential flavor of fall. After taking a five-year break, Oreo confirmed that its Pumpkin Spice Cookies will make a return this year (via CNN Business). 

Another famous pumpkin spice item — the pumpkin spice latte at Starbucks — does not have an official return date yet, according to People. For years, pumpkin spice items have been a sign that cooler days and autumnal colors are on their way, but in recent years the limited-time food items have been getting released earlier, blurring the division between late summer and fall. For example, last year, Starbucks started brewing its pumpkin spice latte on August 24.

Why do people love pumpkin spice items so much? Jason Fischer, a professor of psychological and brain sciences at Johns Hopkins University, told NPR it's all about "familiarity" and comfort. While companies love to call their specialty fall flavors pumpkin spice, they don't usually contain any pumpkin. Instead, you smell nutmeg, cinnamon, and allspice, according to NPR. The appeal of all things pumpkin spice flavor has created some more limited-time food items like the pumpkin spice creamer from Coffee-Mate, pumpkin spice Special K cereal, pumpkin spice chicken sausage from Nature's Promise, and pumpkin spice hummus from Lantana.