What are some best practices for managing variable scope and avoiding global variables in PHP programming?

Global variables can lead to unexpected behavior and make code harder to maintain. To avoid global variables in PHP programming, it's best to use local variables within functions and classes whenever possible. This helps to encapsulate data and prevent unintended side effects.

function exampleFunction() {
    $localVariable = 'This is a local variable';
    
    // Use $localVariable within this function
}