Final answer:
Cosmetologists should avoid using metal clips with relaxer products because they can cause a chemical reaction. Relaxers work by breaking disulfide bonds, which are stronger and give hair its texture, leading to a permanent change. Metal can corrode and negatively interact with the chemicals in the relaxers.
Step-by-step explanation:
When using relaxer products, a cosmetologist should avoid using metal clips because they could cause a chemical reaction when used with a relaxer. The chemicals in relaxers are potent and can react negatively with metal, potentially leading to unwanted heat production, discoloration, or breakage of the hair. Metal clips also risk being corroded by the chemicals, which compromises their integrity.
In the context of hair structure, the shape of hair proteins is maintained by hydrogen bonds and stronger covalent disulfide bonds. Disulfide bonds in hair give it its shape and texture and are harder to break than hydrogen bonds. Heat can break hydrogen bonds, but harsher chemicals are required to break the disulfide bonds, which is why chemical relaxers are used to permanently straighten or 'relax' hair.
Chemical straightening or relaxing flattens the hair during the chemical reaction, where typically a protective base is applied to the scalp, and a relaxing cream is applied to the hair. This cream alters the hair's texture by breaking down the disulfide bonds. Unlike heat styling, which only temporarily breaks hydrogen bonds, relaxing breaks the stronger disulfide bonds, resulting in a permanent alteration until new hair grows.