North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has regained his weight and appears to have health problems related to with obesity, such as high blood pressure and diabetes, and its officials are looking abroad for new drugs to treat it, South Korea's National Intelligence Service told lawmakers, Reuters reported, cited by BTA..
Forty-year-old Kim, known for being a fan of pot and tobacco, comes from a family with a history of heart problems. Both his father and grandfather, who ruled North Korea before he inherited power in 2011, died of heart problems.
Some observers said that Kim, who is about 170 cm tall and previously weighed 140 kg, appeared to have lost a lot of weight in 2021, possibly from a change in his diet. But recent footage in state media shows he has regained his weight.
The National Intelligence Service, South Korea's main spy agency, told lawmakers yesterday during a closed-door briefing that Kim is back to weighing about 140 kilograms and belongs to a high-risk group for heart disease, according to one lawmaker.
p>
According to him, the National Intelligence Service told lawmakers that Kim had been showing symptoms of high blood pressure and diabetes as early as a dozen years ago.
North Korea is one of the most secretive countries in the world, and there is virtually no way for outsiders to know Kim's exact state of health, Reuters notes. The agency adds that, in addition, the National Intelligence Service does not have a good track record in confirming events in North Korea.
Kim's health is the subject of much attention outside North Korea, as he has not officially named a successor to take over the country with a rapidly developing nuclear arsenal aimed at the US and its allies.