And that really is the point - nutrition is personal. I can't imagine taking that many gels of any sort - but if that's works for you who's going to argue.

To OP, all I can suggest is that you practice and find out what works best for you in terms of intervals between intake and quantities. I started at 15 minute intervals but cut back to 20 min intervals a few years back.

Test, practice, retest, practice.

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Trust me I’m a doctor!
Well, I have a PhD :-)

Totally this. Marathon is a beast. 20mile runs are not enough to conquer it properly. In my experience, cramps are your body's response to a new stimulus it isn't prepared/used to.

My worst case was Ottawa marathon in 2016 when I was on the edge of 2:30 fitness but the weather was hot. Started out ok with temperatures less than expected but was slowly fading in the rolling second half as the temperatures warmed up. Still on sub 2:35 pace at 38k when I had my first slow to jog from minor cramps. Got running full stride again and went through 40k with double hamstring cramps leaving me stranded still in the middle of the road too scared to move incase I fell on the ground and couldn't get up...

Point of the story, I was mostly race fit, I take gels every 7k / ~25min, but wasn't physiologically ready to hit goal time in warm conditions. Only way I could've improved is to start slower, or prepare for heat in training (sauna / extra clothing runs / etc)... nutrition wasn't helping that day!

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https://www.strava.com/athletes/nbrowne1