diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4c49bd7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+.env
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 1816042..2ec1693 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -21,3 +21,14 @@ A fun little Discord bot built with `discord.py` that can greet users and answer
    ```bash
    git clone https://github.com/your-username/discord-math-bot.git
    cd discord-math-bot
+
+2. Create ``.env`` file that stores your discord bot token as:
+   ```env
+   DISCORD_TOKEN=your-discord-bot-token-here
+
+> [!WARNING]
+> NOTE: Never commit your ``.env`` file to version control, as it will expose your bot token. It will automatically be ignored via ``.gitignore``.
+
+3. Install dependencies by running:
+   ```bash
+   pip install -r requirements.txt
diff --git a/lowchi.py b/lowchi.py
index 0b1957e..ec315d0 100644
--- a/lowchi.py
+++ b/lowchi.py
@@ -1,5 +1,8 @@
 import discord
+import os
 from discord.ext import commands
+from simpleeval import simple_eval
+from dotenv import load_dotenv
 
 bot = discord.Bot()
 # Create a bot instance
@@ -21,7 +24,7 @@ async def math(ctx, *, question: str):
         expression = question.lower().replace('what is', '').strip()
         # Evaluate the expression
         try:
-            result = eval(expression)
+            result = simple_eval(expression)
             # Respond to the user
             await ctx.send(f"Hi {ctx.author.name}, the answer is {result}! Do you want to know why?")
             # Wait for user response
@@ -41,4 +44,6 @@ async def math(ctx, *, question: str):
             await ctx.send("Sorry, I couldn't understand the expression. Please provide a valid math question.")
 
 # Run the bot with your Discord bot token
-bot.run('DISCORD.TOKEN')
+load_dotenv()  # Load from .env
+token = os.getenv("DISCORD_TOKEN")
+bot.run(token)
diff --git a/requirements.txt b/requirements.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..55e21fc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/requirements.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+discord.py>=2.3.2
+simpleeval>=0.9.13
+python-dotenv>=1.0.1