Older folks in Shreveport are learning not only to balance their diets, but to balance their lives.

LSU Health has partnered up with the Caddo Council on Ageing to help to make things a lot less stressful for seniors, especially when it comest to getting from point "a" to point "b".

At the Allied Health Center at LSU in Shreveport on some weeks nights, older citizens are getting together to improve their balance.

It's all part of a seven-part balance class taught by instructors and students with LSU Health Sciences and funded by the Caddo Council on Aging.

"We're so excited about it. It's been a fantastic class with huge turnouts," said Mary Alice Rountree with CCA.

So far it's been a huge success.

Eloise Johnston, 89, said it helps her feel more confident as she gets older.

"I still need help. I have a lot wrong with me, but I still have a lot of good. I'm still here and I'd like to have the best years of my life ahead," said Johnston.

Patsy Bayless, who is just four years younger than Eloise, said she worries about falling.

Classroom instruction has taught her how to make her house a safe place, so she can live more care free.

"So many of us don't have our houses as safe as we should. We need to check our lights, steps and guards in the bathrooms," said Bayless.

Instructors teach students balance, how to fool-proof their homes and then they check up on them to make sure it's sticking.

"Awareness is already there and we're tickled about that," said associate professor of physical therapy Paula Click Fenter with LSU Health Sciences.

"The balance is hard. It's always a problem, but I just do the best I can," said Johnston.

The balance classes are free to the public and are recommended to anyone over the age of 60. For anyone who wants to sign up, LSU will offer them in the summer. 

To get on the waiting list, call 813-2943 or 676-7900.