Fire worship fire of the hearth and fire of the forge. Hearth worship was maintained in Rome by the Vestal Virgins, who served the goddess Vesta, protector of the home, who had a sacred flame as the symbol of her presence in the city ("cf." Sacred fire of Vesta). The Greek equivalent of the goddess was Hestia, whose worship is less well attested. The fire of the forge was associated with the Greek god Hephaestus and the Roman equivalent Vulcan. These two seem to have served both as craft-guild patrons and as protectors against accidental fires in cities. Also associated with fire
Tobacco smoking million people a year will die of smoking-related illness, making it the single biggest cause of death worldwide, with the largest increase to be among women. WHO forecasts the 21st century's death rate from smoking to be ten times the 20th century's rate ("Washingtonian" magazine, December 2007). Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death and a major public health concern. There are 1.1 billion tobacco users in the world. One person dies every six seconds from a tobacco related disease. Tobacco use leads most commonly to diseases affecting the heart and lungs, with smoking being a major risk