religious, health-related.

They come, too, in a wide and sometimes surprising variety of forms: Seventh Day Adventists, Hebrew Israelites, animal lovers and activists, new agers, and, increasingly, just ordinary folks who want to feel a little better.

This Sunday, moreover, they'll be coming in droves to the Clocktower Mall at Dockyard between 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. for the Vegetarian Society of Bermuda's first Health and Fitness Extravaganza, which Society members hope will turn Bermudians on to the wealth of alternative health care services on the Island and, possibly, the joys and benefits of vegetarian living.

"The Vegetarian Society,'' member Hilary Evans wrote in a statement announcing the event, "is committed to enhancing the quality of life of the Bermudian community through health, diet and lifestyle.

"Our primary aim as a society,'' she continued, "is to inform the public about the benefits of healthy eating. Our global aim is to promote total health for mind, body and soul...'' Lofty though these ambitions may be, no one can accuse Ms Evans or fellow society member Ms Pamela Greyson, both of whom shared their views on vegetarianism and the upcoming fitness forum in a recent interview with Taste, of not practising what they preach.

Although numerous Bermudians, for example, erroneously call themselves vegetarians -- "A lot of people who consider themselves vegetarians,'' Ms Greyson said, "continue to eat fish'' -- the two women have been living on a diet of legumes, tofu and other staples of the movement for years now -- Ms Greyson, a Seventh Day Adventist who also once had digestive problems, for religious and curative reasons, Ms Evans, a health professional, because she felt (indeed is adamant about the fact) that vegetarianism is the only way for human beings to live.

"You could probably,'' she said, "eliminate 80 to 90 percent of the diseases that exist in the world today through healthy living and eating. Vegetarians, for example, have a much lower rate of heart disease and cancer, which are the two biggest killers in most of the Western countries.'' "People,'' Ms Greyson offered further, "have been conditioned by centuries of meat-eating to think of flesh as necessary. But it's not. In many cases, they just refuse to accept the correlation between diet and health.'' While the two Society members admitted that a vegetarian must be vigilant to the acquisition of certain nutrients that are not readily found in vegetarian diets -- vitamin B-12 and iron namely -- they did feel that the extra effort and preparation that vegetarianism does require will inevitably be rewarded with increased health and vitality, a fact that the society, which formed just over a year ago, hopes to get across on Sunday.

"In addition to the health benefits, we feel there's more variety in vegetarianism,'' Ms Evans told Taste. "After all, there is only a certain number of ways you can cook your meat or chicken. It's a misconception that vegetarianism is boring.'' Indeed, many restaurants on the Island, which until recently has been a wasteland for vegetarians in terms of restaurants and products, have jumped on the non-meat bandwagon, offering at least two or three vegetarian dishes on their menus and serving, at the behest of the society, as enthusiastic sponsors of Sunday's extravaganza.

In addition, for example, to the Island Hut -- which, as the oldest vegetarian restaurant in Bermuda, is also the movement's premier gathering spot -- such vegetarian-friendly restaurants as Flanagan's, Chopsticks, the Bombay Bicycle Club and Rosa's Cantina will be represented at the event, as will various religious groups, macrobiotic boosters, yoga and massage practitioners, the Medical Cadet Corps and the Bermuda Diabetes Association.

Among the nuemerous and informative attractions at the event will be food tastings, free cholesterol, sugar and blood pressure screenings, various aerobic and fitness demonstrations and a 3 p.m. panel discussion that will feature Government nutritionist Ms Mellonie Barnum, macrobiotic expert Ms Wendy Kyle, yoga enthusiast Ms Frances Marshall and cardiac exercise specialist Ms Teresa Pough.

"The idea,'' Ms Evans said of the health and fitness forum, "is to get out as much information as possible at the same time as getting all the various groups (of the movement) together -- the religious, the macrobiotic and the members of our society. We all have a great deal in common.'' Anyone, meanwhile, who is interested in possibly becoming a vegetarian would be well-advised to attend the event, Ms Evans told Taste, adding that budding non-eaters of meat should buy a single good cookbook, be patient with themselves and make the change of diet over a period of time. On the other hand, there are some vegetarians who, like Ms Greyson, can make the transition almost immediately.

"I gave it up,'' the vegetarian cum punster said of meat, "cold turkey.''