Physical degradation of CD's

Unless the laser was writing to the disc, I don't see how it would adversely impact it. Don't know for sure, though. 

No. Don’t worry, it will not hurt them. I remember the concern was over age and that the integrity of the info on disks was supposed to be only something like twenty years. I have CDs going back forty years without a problem.

My CDs like my vinyl no longer gets played since streaming now sounds as good or better, cost a fraction, and gives access to over ten million albums. They look nice covering my walls. Don’t forget to consider streaming before investing in any more physical media.

Sometimes a CD will go bad with age, an issue known as "CD rot."  However, this ties to poor manufacturing practices rather than use.  Poor quality control when the CD was made can result in oxidation of the reflective surface. There can also be adhesive bonding issues or the presence of contaminants. However, none of these problems are caused by how many times a CD has been played.  End users can still damage a CD through scratched surfaces or leaving the CD in hot sunlight, etc., but again, these are not playback issues.

I have lots of titles from 1983 - 90 that still play fine.   I have never experienced a CD that wouldn't play, unless it had obvious damage.

All of my discs look new, I never used them in cars or portables so I think that has a lot to do with my good luck wheni load a disc. 

I usually toss and then replace CD's after that have been played a few times.

I'm all in with the FreshMaker approach.

DeKay