According to the findings of a new study published in the journal Pediatrics, the sonatas of the famous 18th-century composer Mozart can help babies gain weight and grow healthier.

The study, conducted at Israel’s Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Centre, is essentially based on the hypothesis that the amount of energy used by babies is reduced when they listen to particular music, like Mozart’s classics; and, as a result, they gain weight faster.

For the study, the Israeli researchers exposed pre-term babies in incubators to 30 minutes of Mozart’s classic music. They noted the amount of energy used by the babies while the music was being played, and compared it with their level of energy consumption when they were not listening to the music. 

The researchers found that the babies expended almost 10 percent less energy when they heard Mozart.

Commenting on the findings, researcher Dr Dror Mandel said: “Mozart's music is composed with a melody that is highly repetitive. This may be affecting the organizational centers of the brain's cortex.” Mandel also added: “We still don't know the long-term effects or if other kinds of music will work just as well.”

Though the researchers carried out their study on premature babies, who need to gain some pounds to become healthy; they said that the study, by and large, has the same implications even in the case of healthy babies.