What are the advantages of using separate database queries for selecting and updating data in PHP applications?

When working with databases in PHP applications, it is generally recommended to use separate queries for selecting and updating data. This separation helps to improve code readability, maintainability, and security. By keeping these operations separate, it becomes easier to understand the purpose of each query and make changes without affecting other parts of the code.

// Select query
$pdo = new PDO("mysql:host=localhost;dbname=mydatabase", "username", "password");
$stmt = $pdo->prepare("SELECT * FROM users WHERE id = :id");
$stmt->bindParam(':id', $userId);
$stmt->execute();
$user = $stmt->fetch();

// Update query
$stmt = $pdo->prepare("UPDATE users SET name = :name WHERE id = :id");
$stmt->bindParam(':name', $newName);
$stmt->bindParam(':id', $userId);
$stmt->execute();