The present invention provides a method for treating individuals affected with the acid sphingomyelinase-deficient forms of Niemann-Pick disease (i.e., Type A or Type B Niemann-Pick) by administering small molecules as specific molecular "chaperones" for the deficient acid sphingomyelinase (ASM) enzyme associated with the disease. The molecules are ceramide, sphingomyelin, or phosphonucleotide analogues.