How can PHP functions like date_create be used to manipulate and format existing date strings?

PHP functions like date_create can be used to manipulate and format existing date strings by converting them into DateTime objects. Once the date string is converted into a DateTime object, various methods can be used to format the date in different ways. This allows for easy manipulation and customization of date and time information.

$dateString = "2022-01-15";
$date = date_create($dateString);
$formattedDate = date_format($date, 'F j, Y');
echo $formattedDate;