Mumbai Mirror Jun 1, 2012, 12.00AM IST (Modify your diet for a shiny…) If your receeding hairline and bald spot are giving you sleepless nights, here are a few dietary modifications to help keep your mane and its sheen Men are as touchy about hair as women are about their backsides. It's a sensitive subject, one that raises many concerns and results in paranoid treatments and extreme measures. However, until the problem begins, there is little thought put into nourishing hair other than the lather and rinse routine. Before you start losing sleep over hair loss and book appointments with trichologists, take a closer look at what you're eating. Chances are that even slight modifications made to what you eat by incorporating ingredients that aid hair growth and health will have a drastic impact. While genes and lifestyle will always have the upper hand, here's what you could eat to help curb that receding hairline. Carrots It's not just the eyes, Vitamin A-rich carrots provide excellent nourishment for the scalp. A healthy scalp ensures shiny, well-conditioned hair that is strengthened and moisturised. An overall balanced diet of lean proteins, fruits, and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, fatty fish like the Indian salmon and low-fat dairy are great boosters for healthy hair. Prunes If your hair suffers from dryness, thinning, stiffness, discolouration or hair fall, depleting reserves of iron might be the culprit. Prunes are known to be great sources of iron and greatly help improve the quality of hair. Also ensure you get plenty of green vegetables and beetroots in your diet in addition to prunes. Green peas Although green peas are not rich in antioxidants or any specific vitamin or mineral, they contain a well-balanced amount of vitamins and minerals such as iron, zinc and B group vitamins. These are essential for maintaining healthy hair. Oats Not only are oats loaded with fiber that helps maintain a healthy heart and bowels, they also contain a high concentration of other essential nutrients such as zinc, iron and omega-6 fatty acids. Together, these are also knows as polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). Omega-6 fatty acids in particular are essential to maintain normal skin, hair growth and development. Since this essential ingredient is only obtained through the diet, make sure your breakfast includes a bowl of oatmeal every few days in the week. Shrimp While red meats are best avoided in excess, finding an appropriate substitute for proteins might be a little difficult for those looking to build muscle etc. Alternatively, of the wide variety of sea food available, shrimps are a great substitute. They not only go excellently well in a number of curries and pastas, their potent concentration of Vitamin B12, iron, zinc contain all the necessary nourishment to prevent hair loss.