Objective  To explore the impact of family care and social support on health promotion behaviors among elder residents.

  Methods  A total of 1 455 community residents aged 60 years and over were recruited with random cluster sampling in Handan municipality of Hebei province; then we conducted a household survey among the elderly using a general questionnaire, Family Adaptation, Partnership, Growth, Affection and Resolve (APGAR) Scale, Social Support Rating Scale (SSRS), and Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile-Ⅱ (HPLP-Ⅱ) during October 2016.

  Results  The overall and domain scores of HPLP-Ⅱ were higher among the elderly with high family care than among those with low family care (P < 0.05). The health promotion behavior score was higher among the elderly perceiving good social support than among those perceiving general or poor social support (P < 0.05). The health promotion behavior was positively correlated with the overall score of family care and social support (r = 0.531, P < 0.05). Stepwise multivariate regression analysis revealed influencing factors of health promotion behavior in the elderly as following: marital status (regression coefficient β ′ = 4.458, standard regression coefficient β = 0.096), monthly income (β ′ = – 1.728, β = – 0.080), family structure (β ′ = 2.463, β = 0.072), with chronic disease (β ′ = – 4.188, β = – 0.200), having long-term medication (β ′ = 3.572, β = 0.085), family care (β ′ = 2.344, β = 0.164), and social support (β ′ = 1.263, β = 0.528); all the influencing factors contributed to 47.4 % of the total variation in health promotion behavior.

  Conclusion  Family care and social support influence health promotion behaviors among community elderly.