Seen At 11: Doctors Say One Specific Musical Composition Can Put You Right To Sleep

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- If you're worried about being able to fall asleep tonight and every night, there's some good news for you.

As CBS2's Dick Brennan reported, a new solution has been scientifically proven to work in just eight minutes, and it does not involve taking medication.

For centuries, mothers have been singing their babies to sleep. Now, new research proves what parents have instinctively known for a long time.

"Music, my friends, is a much better, much healthier way to restore the sleep back to normal," said Dr. Svetlana Kogan.

Kogan, an internist, said there is one song in particular that has been scientifically proven to help people fall asleep.

"They did measure the blood pressure of the people that were listening," she said. "They measured their heart rate, the activity in the brain and everything seems to have been subdued."

The eight-minute song called "Weightless" was designed by the English musical trio Marconi Union to replicate a heartbeat.

"We are constantly stimulating throughout the day, so by the time the evening comes around, it's very difficult for our nervous system to calm down," Kogan said.

But with the song, experts say your heart rate will gradually come to match that of the beat and as it slows, the blood pressure falls.

With no repeating melody, your brain can completely switch off, because it is not trying to predict what is coming next.

The study also found that the song reduced the overall anxiety of female listeners by 65 percent -- something busy professionals whom CBS2 spoke to weren't surprised by.

Sometimes when I can't fall asleep, I actually put on meditation music," said Alex Kofsky.

"I constantly have my headphones in," said Chelsea Geyer.

Dr. Kogan, who has actually prescribed listening to music, said the power of music is pretty astonishing.

For example, when soothing music is playing, crystals in water are symmetrical and balanced. In contrast, Dr. Kogan said, if you look at water crystals while loud, upbeat music is playing, you will see complete chaos.

"Let's remember, that we are over 70 percent water, so you can imagine what happens inside of our bodies after we listen to these different types of music," Kogan said.

"Weightless" is said to work so well, researchers warn against listening to it while driving.