SEOUL (Kyodo) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's reported weight gain is continuing unabated, with the South Korean government estimating from his body shape and gait that he has put on some 30 kilograms over the past five years and presently weighs around 130 kg, South Korea's Chosun Ilbo newspaper reported Saturday.

     Since obesity is often linked to health problems such as cardiovascular disease, neighboring countries are paying close attention to changes in Kim's waistline.

     When Kim officially emerged as successor to his father in September 2010, he was already considerably fatter than photos of him taken when he attended school in Switzerland in the 1990s.

     For that reason, some wondered whether he had intentionally packed on the pounds to more resemble his grandfather, the country's founder Kim Il Sung.

     The Chosun Ilbo noted that Kim Jong Un's girth rapidly expanded after ordering the execution of his uncle Jang Song Thaek in December 2013. It quoted sources as attributing the weight gain to his gorging on food and drink due to stress.