// You can keep environment variables in a file, usually named .env, and load them
// into your Node.js application using a package like dotenv.
// 
// Here are the steps to do so:
// 
// Create a file named .env in the root of your project directory.
// 
// Add your environment variables to the .env file in the following format:

VARIABLE_NAME=variable_value

// For example:
MYSQL_USER=myuser
MYSQL_PASSWORD=mypassword

// Install the dotenv package by running the following command in your terminal:
npm install dotenv

// In your Node.js application, require the dotenv package at the top of your entry file (usually index.js), like this:
require('dotenv').config();

// Access your environment variables in your code using the process.env object. For example:

const mysqlUser = process.env.MYSQL_USER;
const mysqlPassword = process.env.MYSQL_PASSWORD;

// It's important to keep your .env file outside of your version control system,
// as it can contain sensitive information that you don't want to share with others.
// If you're using Git, you can add the .env file to your .gitignore file to
// prevent it from being committed.