Mums in the Amazon have known for centuries about the benefits of introducing babies to swimming. Now Worthing women are catching on too.

When Lucy Keeffe set up Swimbabies she had no idea how successful it would be.

In January, she started working with 15 babies and now teaches 90 children from as young as two months.

According to Lucy, the younger the children start the better.

She said: "We take babies from eight weeks old as their dive reflex is at its strongest when they are up to six months old."

The classes have such a long waiting list that mums-to-be are signing up months before their babies are born.

Lucy, 34, of The Estuary, Littlehampton, said: "It not only helps with a baby's development and helps stimulate them but is a good way to teach them water safety. It also helps mums and dads bond with their babies.

"Women in places such as the Amazon know about the benefits but in Britain we seem to have been quite straight-laced about it until now."

Lucy started looking into the impact of babies swimming when her first child, Joshua, now three, was born.

She said: "He was born with Down's syndrome and I knew he needed as much physical input as possible. The water had such a big impact and really helped his development and his learning."

While pregnant with twins Hattie and Oliver, now two, Lucy gained her Amateur Swimming Association teaching qualification and now runs classes four times a week at Henry House Hydrotherapy in Heene Road, Worthing.

She said: "There are only two reactions - children either love the water or hate it. There seems to be no in-between at all. It is fantastic watching some of them when I say 'ready, go.' They can't wait to start swimming."

Lucy is adamant children are never too young to learn about water safety.

She said: "One of the most important things I teach babies and parents is how to be safe in the water. It's especially important as we live in a coastal area."

For more information, log on to www.swimbabies.com or call 01903 717652.