What are the advantages of restructuring a database schema to adhere to the first normal form when dealing with tags in PHP?

When dealing with tags in PHP, restructuring a database schema to adhere to the first normal form can improve data integrity, reduce redundancy, and simplify queries. By storing tags in a separate table and establishing a many-to-many relationship between the main entity and tags, you can easily manage and query tags without duplicating data.

// Example of restructuring a database schema to adhere to the first normal form for tags

// Create a tags table
CREATE TABLE tags (
    id INT PRIMARY KEY,
    name VARCHAR(50)
);

// Create a many-to-many relationship table between main entity and tags
CREATE TABLE main_entity_tags (
    main_entity_id INT,
    tag_id INT,
    PRIMARY KEY (main_entity_id, tag_id),
    FOREIGN KEY (main_entity_id) REFERENCES main_entity(id),
    FOREIGN KEY (tag_id) REFERENCES tags(id)
);

// Insert tags for a main entity
INSERT INTO tags (id, name) VALUES (1, 'tag1');
INSERT INTO tags (id, name) VALUES (2, 'tag2');

// Insert tag relationships for a main entity
INSERT INTO main_entity_tags (main_entity_id, tag_id) VALUES (1, 1);
INSERT INTO main_entity_tags (main_entity_id, tag_id) VALUES (1, 2);