Thanks for your feedback! :) It's certainly interesting to read because we are constantly torn between trying to make the user interface as unobtrusive as possible and having to cram so much important information in 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.