Another piece of feedback: it would be useful if we could somehow see how far Curly's stats are decreasing on the character itself. For example, a thought bubble of an apple could be shown if curly's hunger is halfway. This would be useful because we wouldn't need to look at the stats constantly, but are gently reminded. This would allow us to focus more on exploration and add a bit of polish. No need to implement this though, just putting it out there!
Yeah, I can imagine that it is hard to find a balance... If you ask me the survival aspect of the game should encourage exploration and add depth to the game instead of becoming a nag. I had more fun looking for carrots on Phare island, and finding secrets on the way, than I had interrupting a puzzle because I didn't have enough food.