How Many Calories Are in Sugar Cane?

Most of the common table sugar you use everyday is made from sugar cane. Sugar is processed in many forms including refined white and unrefined brown, granulated, coarse and instant dissolving. The sweet stalk of natural sugar cane, eaten raw, is a treat for young children with a sweet tooth the world over.

A fresh stick of raw sugar cane contains 40 calories and 10 grams of sugar. Unrefined sugar cane also contains 187 milligrams of calcium, 56 milligrams of phosphorous, 4.8 milligrams of iron, 757 milligrams of potassium and 97 milligrams of sodium, compared with scant traces of those nutrients found in processed granulated sugar cane, according to Epicurious.com. There is no fat, sodium, protein, fiber or cholesterol in sugar cane.

One tsp of unrefined sugar cane contains 11 calories. The American Heart Association recommends consuming less than 100 calories a day from sugar for women and less than 150 for men. If you drink 5 cups of coffee per day, each with 2 teaspoons of sugar from sugar cane, you would exceed the maximum amount of calories from sugar and be at risk for weight gain, dental cavities, increased cholesterol and a greater risk of heart disease.

To burn off the calories from eating a stick of sugar cane, you must walk for 10 minutes at 3.5 miles per hour, cycle at 10 miles per hour for 4.5 minutes, or do light dancing for 7.5 minutes according to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.