diff --git a/mm/vmscan.c b/mm/vmscan.c
index 766b36bec829..c6e61dae382b 100644
--- a/mm/vmscan.c
+++ b/mm/vmscan.c
@@ -3209,11 +3209,8 @@ static int balance_pgdat(pg_data_t *pgdat, int order, int classzone_idx)
 
 		sc.nr_reclaimed = 0;
 
-		/*
-		 * Scan in the highmem->dma direction for the highest
-		 * zone which needs scanning
-		 */
-		for (i = pgdat->nr_zones - 1; i >= 0; i--) {
+		/* Scan from the highest requested zone to dma */
+		for (i = classzone_idx; i >= 0; i--) {
 			struct zone *zone = pgdat->node_zones + i;
 
 			if (!populated_zone(zone))