The electronic cigarette includes a light that glows as the user sucks on it, and a nicotine vapour that looks like smoke. (CBC)

A Charlottetown store owner is wondering where some of her customers will turn now that Health Canada has ordered her to stop selling electronic cigarettes.

"We see people doing two things," Tracy Dooley of Wild Impulse told CBC News Monday.

"We see people using them who either want to reduce the amount they're smoking. So, they're substituting them — cigarettes and one of these [electronic ones]. And we've seen a lot of people as well completely quit smoking using these."

But they won't be using them for either purpose in the foreseeable future. Health Canada has ordered Canadian retailers to stop selling the e-cigarettes until it has had an opportunity to evaluate their safety.

E-cigarettes look like real cigarettes from a distance, complete with a glowing tip, but they deliver nicotine in a vapour. E-cigarettes are reusable, with a replaceable nicotine cartridge.

Dooley had to pack up her inventory of e-cigarettes and cartridges Monday. They were also available to Islanders through two private distributors online, but those operations have also had to close up shop.

Tracy Dooley does not know when or if she will be able to stock e-cigarettes again. (CBC)

"These products may pose health risks and have not been fully evaluated for safety, quality, and efficacy," the federal department said in a written statement.

"The sale of these health products is currently not compliant with the Food and Drugs Act since no electronic smoking products have been granted a market authorization in Canada."

The Canadian Cancer Society is applauding the Health Canada decision. Dawn Binns, executive director for the P.E.I. division, said even if the e-cigarettes help people quit smoking, safety must come first.

"Any product that contains a drug — which these do, nicotine — should go through the proper regulatory processes, through Health Canada, to determine if they're safe to go on the market," said Binns.

Dooley said she wishes she knew there would be a problem before she started selling them.

"That leaves me concerned, because there's a lot of people that are using them and are half way through their quitting stages and are either going to have to A: go cold turkey, or B: go back to cigarettes because the nicotine cartridges aren't available," she said.

Health Canada said any retailer can still apply for authorization to sell electronic cigarettes, but they will have to wait for Health Canada to complete its full evaluation.