Oklahoma Cosmetology Board Practice Exam

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Ace your Oklahoma Cosmetology Board Exam with comprehensive practice questions covering all topics. Get ahead with multiple-choice quizzes, detailed explanations, and hints for each question.

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What type of bond is broken during the perming process?

Hydrogen bonds
Salt bonds
Disulfide bonds
Covalent bonds

The correct answer is: Disulfide bonds

During the perming process, disulfide bonds are the backbone of the hair's structure that are specifically targeted and broken to allow the hair to take on a new shape. Hair consists of keratin, which contains disulfide bonds formed between the sulfur atoms in the amino acids cysteine. When a perm solution is applied, it contains chemicals that break these disulfide bonds, allowing the hair to be reshaped into curls or waves. After the hair is reshaped, a neutralizer is used, which re-forms these disulfide bonds in the new shape, effectively "setting" the perm. Understanding the role of disulfide bonds is crucial because these are the strongest bonds in hair chemistry, and their breaking and reforming is what enables the permanent alteration of hair texture.