How can PHP developers optimize their code for performance when dealing with complex database queries involving multiple tables?

When dealing with complex database queries involving multiple tables in PHP, developers can optimize their code for performance by using proper indexing on the database tables, minimizing the number of queries executed, and utilizing efficient SQL joins. Additionally, caching query results, using prepared statements to prevent SQL injection, and optimizing the database schema can also improve performance.

// Example code snippet using efficient SQL joins and prepared statements
$query = "SELECT users.name, orders.order_date FROM users 
          JOIN orders ON users.id = orders.user_id
          WHERE users.id = ?";
$stmt = $pdo->prepare($query);
$stmt->execute([$user_id]);
$results = $stmt->fetchAll(PDO::FETCH_ASSOC);