Duke study tackles football’s impact on Black men’s brain health

Robert W. Turner, II, PhD, a former NFL defensive back is now a medical sociologist at Duke University School of Medicine and a leading voice urging Black men to join brain health research. 

According to the National Institute on Aging, the Alzheimer’s Association, and other researchers, Black Americans are approximately twice as likely as white Americans to develop dementia and Alzheimer’s. The reasons for this disparity are unknown — perhaps in part because Black individuals are much less likely than whites to participate in Alzheimer’s and dementia research studies.

In other words, Turner said, the communities most affected by dementia and Alzheimer’s disease are the least represented in the research designed to understand it.

He wants to change that. Turner is the principal investigator of a National Institutes of Health-funded study examining how repetitive head injuries shape aging in Black men.

The study looks at whether repeated head hits from tackle football can affect memory, thinking, and mental health in Black former players and whether life experiences and chronic stress make those problems worse.

Studies already indicate a close connection between football and chronic traumatic encephalopathy, known as CTE. Turner wants to know whether repeat head hits might also increase the risk of Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease.

“These questions affect entire families and communities,” Turner said. “The goal is to understand how Alzheimer’s and CTE function in Black men — athletes and non-athletes — so we can address the full picture. It may improve diagnosis and early access to treatment.”

The project spans Duke University School of Medicine, Boston University, and the Duke/UNC Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.

Researchers are enrolling 200 Black men over age 50: half of them former American tackle football athletes across all levels of play from high school and college to the pros, and half who have never played football or a contact sport.

“You can’t do the science if the people most affected aren’t at the table,” said Turner, an associate professor in the Department of Population Health Sciences who is partnering with Duke researcher Rajendra Morey, MD, on the study. “Unfortunately, a lot of Black men will say they’ve never been asked to participate.”

Those enrolled in the study undergo MRIs, blood and urine testing, and thinking and memory tests at Duke and Boston University. Members of the R.W. Turner Lab will collect detailed social determinants of health data and conduct interviews to capture experiences that numbers alone can’t explain.

A new way forward   

Turner’s interest in this area began with his own post-football odyssey. After retiring from football at 28 years old, the New Jersey native worked in tech and sports marketing before earning a PhD in his 40s at the CUNY Graduate Center.

His dissertation, a deep dive into the lives of former NFL athletes navigating life after football, became the critically acclaimed 2018 book Not for Long: The Life and Career of the NFL Athlete, published by Oxford University Press.

His book addresses the grind culture of football when athletes are taught to push through pain — physical and emotional. “It can make asking for help feel like defeat.”

Retirement from football can bring an identity crisis few are prepared for.

“Guys who see themselves only as football players struggle the most,” Turner said. “The ones who thrive are those who’ve built a broader identity as a father, husband, mentor, or man of faith.”

He learned chronic pain shapes life after football more than concussions alone. 

From the outset of his studies, Turner saw a gap: Black men dominate elite college programs, and professional football — around 70% of NFL players and at the college level about 40% of players identify as Black — yet remain underrepresented in the studies that guide diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of brain disorders.

“It can create a dangerous cycle where diagnoses come way too late, or even worse, they’re misdiagnosed with something else entirely,” he said.

To address the participation gap, Turner began building bridges between locker rooms and labs.

He launched the Men’s Brain Health Research Directory in 2023 to connect Black men with neuroscience studies. That same year, he founded the Black Men’s Brain Health Conference, a multidisciplinary effort dedicated to aging and well-being among Black Men across the life course.

He has collaborated with the NFL Alumni Association and partnered with the Alzheimer’s Association on outreach efforts.

This week, as the Super Bowl draws national attention, Turner is convening researchers, athletes, and community leaders for a series of Black Men’s Brain Health events, including a conference at Merritt College and a networking session for current and former NFL players.

He’s leaning into a new model of research that recognizes study participants as partners and co-creators, not just subjects.

“Men want answers for themselves and those still in the game,” he said. “We’re seeing real interest because now, they’re finally being asked.”  

Video by Daniel Dunston, senior multimedia producer at Duke University School of Medicine.