Lead in paint is not "yesterday's problem." It remains a potentially dangerous source of lead in any home built before 1978 (when the first steps were taken in Canada to regulate the lead content of paint used on indoor surfaces). Advice from the Canadian federal government (collected and linked below) about avoiding lead exposure often refers to avoiding lead risks in homes built before 1960. While it is true that lead levels were highest before 1960 (and going back to early in the 20th Century), lead levels in interior-use paint remained at dangerous levels until 1978. Indeed, Canadian regulations did not apply to exterior paint until the late 1990s. The most precautionary approach is to follow advice about lead paint abatement for any buildings built before 1978. Advice to parents provided by federal agencies and NGOs in the United States takes this more precautionary approach. In Canada, it is also advisable to consider any exterior paint applied until at least the end of the 1980s to be possibly lead-contaminated. Ensure that young children do not play in the soil in the "drip-line" around a home, especially alongside painted porches, staircases and windows.

Studies from the US and Canada have commonly found residues of pesticides and heavy metals in indoor dust. These substances come from indoor sources and are also tracked in from outdoors. Lead from old paint is of particular concern. It is estimated that 50 percent of the daily lead intake of two-year old urban children occurs by ingestion of house dust through normal hand-to-mouth behaviour. Lead can build up in house dust through normal wear and tear of both indoor and outdoor painted surfaces. However, during renovations extremely high levels of lead can occur in dust. This dust can create very dangerous lead exposures for children and pregnant women (the concern here is exposure to the fetus).