>"if you eat a variety of vegetables, and red meat once or twice a
>week, you should not require supplements."

This largely depends on whether or not you believe that the vitamin and
mineral content of modern vegetables is as high as it would have been
before modern agriculture.  I frankly don't know the answer to this; what
I've heard repeatedly is that most modern vegetables are planted in what
has become nutrient-poor soil, and so are lacking in nutrients we would
have had in greater abundance in millenia past.  The truth of this I cannot
verify; I wish I could.  But there are repeated claims that North American
farm soil is nutrient-poor, and I wonder if anyone can verify that.

I do know that at least on the issue of chromium, most American soils and
waters are definitely far lower in it than in other parts of the world, and
chromium has been shown to be not only good for you but lack of it may be a
contributor to diabetes.  Certainly Type II diabetics tend to show
significant improvement when taking it.   I'd be surprised if Bernstein
doesn't at least recommend it (I haven't finished his latest book yet so I
don't know what he says about it).

I do think people tend to go way overboard on vitamin and mineral
supplements, and some people megadose themselves in an unhealthy manner.
But I've long thought that good basic supplements are cheap insurance and
shouldn't be a health threat unless you're megadosing.