But he was born with a defective heart valve and a hole in the heart and is on a waiting list for a major operation at Glenfield Hospital, Leicester.

Doctors hope the hole will close naturally but are more concerned about the problem with his heart valve.

They plan to insert a tiny balloon into his groin to inflate the heart valve, which will open it and keep the problem under control until Oliver is old enough to have further surgery.

His mum Coleen Clarke (21), of Burghley Street, Bourne, said: “When I first found out about his heart I just cried because I was so upset.

“Now I try not to think about his condition because when I do I just dwell on it.

“It is hard to believe that it is happening to us. It is one of those things that happens to other people.

“I think it will really sink in when he has surgery.”

If the operation is unsuccessful Oliver may have to have an artificial valve fitted but Coleen and partner Craig Sargent (21) are optimistic.

Coleen said: “He is a really active and happy baby.

“You just can't tell there is anything wrong with him at all because you can't see it physically.”

And if there is anything that can help baby Oliver it is his family, who have a history of long lives.

He is the youngest of five generations of the family, who recently got together.

His grandmother Karen Clarke (40), of Stephenson Way, Bourne, said Oliver has not been fazed by the constant trips to hospital and he shows no symptoms of a heart problem.

She said: “When he was eight weeks old he had to have a scan and an ECG.

“He is just a normal, happy baby."

The family has been told that the waiting time for surgery is a minimum of six weeks.