diff --git a/include/linux/cgroup.h b/include/linux/cgroup.h
index 5f9ba5881717..c288bce428f8 100644
--- a/include/linux/cgroup.h
+++ b/include/linux/cgroup.h
@@ -800,9 +800,8 @@ struct cgroup *cgroup_next_child(struct cgroup *pos, struct cgroup *cgrp);
  * the start of the next iteration by, for example, bumping the css refcnt.
  */
 #define cgroup_for_each_child(pos, cgrp)				\
-	for ((pos) = list_first_or_null_rcu(&(cgrp)->children,		\
-					    struct cgroup, sibling);	\
-	     (pos); (pos) = cgroup_next_child((pos), (cgrp)))
+	for ((pos) = cgroup_next_child(NULL, (cgrp)); (pos);		\
+	     (pos) = cgroup_next_child((pos), (cgrp)))
 
 struct cgroup *cgroup_next_descendant_pre(struct cgroup *pos,
 					  struct cgroup *cgroup);
diff --git a/kernel/cgroup.c b/kernel/cgroup.c
index dd55244952bd..2b7354faaca7 100644
--- a/kernel/cgroup.c
+++ b/kernel/cgroup.c
@@ -3112,7 +3112,7 @@ struct cgroup *cgroup_next_descendant_pre(struct cgroup *pos,
 		pos = cgroup;
 
 	/* visit the first child if exists */
-	next = list_first_or_null_rcu(&pos->children, struct cgroup, sibling);
+	next = cgroup_next_child(NULL, pos);
 	if (next)
 		return next;
 
@@ -3151,7 +3151,7 @@ struct cgroup *cgroup_rightmost_descendant(struct cgroup *pos)
 		last = pos;
 		/* ->prev isn't RCU safe, walk ->next till the end */
 		pos = NULL;
-		list_for_each_entry_rcu(tmp, &last->children, sibling)
+		cgroup_for_each_child(tmp, last)
 			pos = tmp;
 	} while (pos);
 
@@ -3165,8 +3165,7 @@ static struct cgroup *cgroup_leftmost_descendant(struct cgroup *pos)
 
 	do {
 		last = pos;
-		pos = list_first_or_null_rcu(&pos->children, struct cgroup,
-					     sibling);
+		pos = cgroup_next_child(NULL, pos);
 	} while (pos);
 
 	return last;