How Many Calories Do You Consume While Licking A Stamp

Postage stamps on a table.

Image Credit: Sitikka/iStock/Getty Images Licking the back of a postage stamp may seem a perfectly innocuous activity for calorie-counters and dieters, but lick enough of them and the calories may start to add up, especially if the stamps are British and larger than normal.

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British vs. American Stamps

The calorie content in the adhesive on the back of a U.S. postage stamp works out to about one-tenth of a calorie, according to nutritional information from the United States Postal Service posted on the DietFacts.com website. British stamps, on the other hand, contain about 5.9 calories per lick; the adhesive on a larger commemorative or special British stamp contains a whopping 14.5 calories.

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Type of Adhesive

Lick-and-stick British postage stamps use an adhesive gum made from starch, or dextrin, and a petroleum-derived synthetic alcohol, or polyvinyl alcohol, states the “Guardian” website. U.S. postage stamp adhesive also uses dextrin or a synthetic emulsion.

FDA Approved

The Bindagraphics website says that the adhesive on lick-and-stick postage stamps is the only glue that must have the Food and Drug Administration’s seal of approval.

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Fun Fact

As stated in the August 11, 2004, article “The Secret World of Stamps” in London’s “The Mirror,” Dean Gould of Felixstowe, Suffolk, England, made stamp-licking history in 1995 by licking 450 stamps and sticking them to envelopes in a mere four minutes. Using the current 5.9 calorie content the adhesive on an individual British postage stamp, Gould consumed 2,655 calories from stamp adhesive alone.

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  references & resources
  
      Guardian: Nooks and Crannies--Postage Stamp Glue
    
      Diet Facts: USPS Nutrition Facts--Postage Stamp
    
      Bindagraphics: A Glimpse Into the World of Glue
    
      The Free Library: The Mirror--The Secret World of Stamps
    
      Cleveland.com: Facts About Stamps
       




  references & resources
  
      Guardian: Nooks and Crannies--Postage Stamp Glue
    
      Diet Facts: USPS Nutrition Facts--Postage Stamp
    
      Bindagraphics: A Glimpse Into the World of Glue
    
      The Free Library: The Mirror--The Secret World of Stamps
    
      Cleveland.com: Facts About Stamps
    




Postage stamps on a table.

Image Credit: Sitikka/iStock/Getty Images

      Guardian: Nooks and Crannies--Postage Stamp Glue
    
      Diet Facts: USPS Nutrition Facts--Postage Stamp
    
      Bindagraphics: A Glimpse Into the World of Glue
    
      The Free Library: The Mirror--The Secret World of Stamps
    
      Cleveland.com: Facts About Stamps