We are excited to welcome a Board Certified Pediatric Dentist and another General Dentist to our growing team! We continue to work hard to expand our access and services while maintaining the highest quality safety protocols. We feel that these two dentists are a fantastic addition to our team. Please read below for further information.

Lastly, as the end of the year approaches our schedules are filling quickly. Our website offers a new online scheduling feature where established hygiene patients are able to schedule appointments from a computer or phone. We hope to see you soon!

We would like to welcome you to join us as we walk to end Juvenile Type 1 Diabetes! Here at Ann Arbor Smiles, we have staff that have been battling Type 1 Diabetes since childhood. In an effort to help find a cure, we will be walking this October to show our support and raise money for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. If donating is not the right fit for you at this time, we would still love to have you to join us at the walk! There is no cost to register and your support would be greatly appreciated. Not only is this event for a great cause, but it is also a great time!

We hope you will join us in walking to help JDRF find a cure for Juvenile Type 1 Diabetes!

UPDATE: For this year’s event, you will stay in your car and ROLL to end Juvenile Diabetes! JDRF is following CDC guidelines to provide a non-contact event that will still allow us to celebrate our T1D community.

For event updates and to register to join our team, follow this link!

bit.ly/2zYdmsK

The Smiles team turned out big for this years Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s One Walk! The Walk was at Hudson Mills Metropark and many of our team, family, friends, and patients showed up in full force! Thank you to everyone who joined us this year in helping find a cure for Type 1 Diabetes. Here are some photos from the big day. Hope to see you all next year!

Got extra Halloween Candy? Consider putting the extra treats to good use by participating in Ann Arbor Smile’s Halloween Candy Buy Back! With this program, kids can trade their candy for cash! See you on November 1st from 5:30-7:30 PM at our main office on Huron Parkway.

Hi! My name is Dr. Emily Kennedy. That is my professional name, although legally it is Emily Kennedy Marlow. I know some of you very well, and others not as much. I am friendly, so please don’t be afraid of saying hello when you see me!

I have had Type 1 Diabetes for 28 years. I was diagnosed at the end of May in 1990 here at the University of Michigan when I was 4 years old. It is a very challenging disease that affects almost every aspect of my day, between work, food, exercise, leisure, etc. There are good days where everything goes as planned, and there are terrible horrible no good very bad days where my body doesn’t do what it is supposed to. I have excellent physicians and the best health care possible, so I have every advantage, mostly because of all the amazing choices my parents helped me make as a young child. My uncle was also diagnosed with this disease at age 4, and he has since passed away from complications of diabetes. We miss him dearly, and want to raise money so that more people have tools to manage this, and one day soon, find a cure.

Dr. Emily with her Mom Nancy Kennedy Before Going to Diabetes Camp (Camp Midicha)

The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) was founded 47 years ago with the mission to accelerate life-changing breakthroughs to cure, prevent, and treat T1D and its complications. Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) is the new name for Juvenile Diabetes. Not everyone with the disease is diagnosed as a ‘juvenile,’ so the name was changed formally. T1D is a disease where the diabetic patient lacks hormones that allow it to convert sugar or carbohydrates into energy. If sugar is not converted to energy, it sits in the blood and moves around the body. The body needs the amount of sugar in the blood to be only a certain amount, or else all the blood vessels get confused and swell with water to try to dilute the excess sugar. Diabetic patients take those hormones (insulin, and occasionally glucagon) at different times during the day through shots or pumps that are attached to the skin at all times. Every time I eat, I have to measure what I eat, calculate the amount of insulin I need, check my currant blood sugar level, and then give the right amount of insulin. I cannot eat more or less than what I accounted for without consequences. Sometimes equipment will malfunction and I will get sick, or my body will be silly and not react to the insulin how it is supposed to. When this happens, I feel exhausted, irritable, discouraged, nauseous, thirsty, sweaty, and just sick. I don’t call in sick, because I’ve learned how to function while not feeling well. I’ve always been embarrassed that people will think I’m “faking it,” so unfortunately I don’t always ask for help when I really might need it.

Dr. Emily with her dad Dr. Kennedy after coming home from Diabetes Camp

Many patients are not as lucky as I. They didn’t have parents who cared so, so much, or doctors that were nearby, or excellent health insurance, or access to care. I consider myself luckiest first, and proud of my efforts second. Mostly, I find myself filled with more gratitude for what I have been blessed with than you could imagine.

For those patients who aren’t as lucky as I, they can have issues with all of the parts of the body that have blood! aka all of them!! The eyes, toes, heart and kidneys can all fail over time with poor management of diabetes.

Fortunately, my diabetic doctor has said that he doesn’t think my life will ever really be negatively affected by those complications, and that June (my newborn daughter) will probably never have the disease, either.

I am here to ask for your help as we fight a very very good fight to help others get educated, get motivated, get access to care, and make care more diverse and awesome so that other 4 year olds or 75 year olds never have to fear blindness or heart disease from this horrible disease. My mom and dad started the Ann Arbor branch of this JDRF Walkathon 25 years ago to help with these efforts, and I am here to ask all of you to help me improve the lives of others with this disease and the doctors who care for them. 

Nancy Kennedy and Emily Kennedy in the Newspaper promoting JDRF 25 Years Ago

All Four Kennedy Girls Walking for a Cure

No one can control whether or not they will ever get this disease, but we can control our efforts to care for those in need.
Thank you for reading!! Don’t EVER hesitate to ask questions to me about it. I care deeply about this, and am thrilled that you guys do, too!!

Dr. Emily Walking with Dr. Marzonie’s Daughter Rebecca at JDRF

You are warmly invited to join the Ann Arbor Smiles Walk team on September 23rd at beautiful Hudson Mills in Dexter for the JDRF One Walk, a great family event! We also welcome donations to our team which will support JDRF research to cure diabetes! Click on the link to find our home page to register or donate. Help us reach our goal of $2500. An awesome custom designed Ann Arbor Smiles team t-shirt will be given to all registered team members.

Help us turn Type 1 into Type NONE!

All my gratitude,

Dr. Emily 🙂

It’s the last day in April, but it’s not too late to talk about Oral Cancer Awareness. Early detection could save your life or the life of a loved one.

Be sure to see one of our trusted professionals if you have any of the following symptoms: 1.) mouth sores or irritations that won’t go away 2.) Red or white patches 3.) Pain, tenderness or numbness in the mouth or lips 4.) A lump, thickening, rough spot, crust or small eroded area 5.) Difficulty chewing, swallowing, speaking or moving your tongue or jaw and 6.) A change in the way your teeth fit together when you close your mouth.

Smoking and heavy drinking can put you at greater risk, as well as the sexually transmitted disease human papilloma virus (HPV). HPV is now the leading cause of throat cancers. Please visit the American Dental Association www.ada.org to learn more!

Source: American Dental Association

To nominate us, go to www.ecurrent.com/2018-best-of-washtenaw-ballot. Click the box for “Cool Pros,” select “Dentist,” and type in “Ann Arbor Smiles.” That’s it! Check back in March to vote for the top six nominees in each category, and help name us Best Dentist in Washtenaw! The deadline for nominations is March 12th. 

Welcome Dr. Susan Haddock, DDS

We’re honored to welcome Dr. Susan Haddock to the Ann Arbor Smiles Team! Dr. Haddock has been providing excellent quality dental care for over 25 years in Ann Arbor. She’s a graduate of the University of Michigan Dental School, has been elected many times elected as a delegate to the Michigan Dental Association (MDA), and was previously the President of the Washtenaw District Dental Society (WDDS). She’s an incredible asset to the team and we can’t wait for you to meet her.

Welcome Dr. Irene Zillich, DDS

Along with Dr. Haddock, we are also lucky to be gaining her daughter Dr. Irene Zillich. Dr. Zillich is also a Graduate of the University of Michigan School of Dentistry, having graduated Magna Cum Laude in Electrical Engineering from University of Michigan’s College of Electrical Engineering. She holds advanced Education in General Dentistry (AEGD residency) from the  University of Florida, Jacksonville.

Now Offering Two Convenient Locations

The most exciting part of having Dr. Haddock on board is that we are now offering two convenient dental locations. Our second location will be on Stadium Boulevard on the West Side of Ann Arbor at 1793 W Stadium Blvd # 1, Ann Arbor, MI 48103.

Call (734) 662-3222 to make an appointment at our new location today!