Gaps between active areas of menu items

What is a better solution to make gaps between active areas of menu items or place them close to each other? I'm asking just about active areas of links not about visual styles.

For example, maybe gaps help to aim on touch devices. Is it not good when cursor switches between pointer and normal when it hovers on menu?

Live demo https://codepen.io/rmnturov/full/KJqWjq